Opposites Will Attract
by Song Of The Sparrow
Summary: Melissa is surprised with a new addition to the family one morning. He's rude, and he likes to taunt her. But nevertheless, she feels something other than hate for him.
1. Chapter I

**Opposites Will Attract**

Chapter 1

_Hey guys!_

_I didn't like the way this story was turning out, so I'm redoing it._

_Enjoy, and don't be angry with me!_

Melissa Wu ran a brush through her black hair. She tied it up quickly with an elastic, wincing when she accidentally pulled a few pieces of her hair out. She grabbed her eyeshadow and applied the light coloured powder to her almond-shaped black eyes. She then brushed mascara onto her eyelashes. Finally, she added light pink lip gloss to her own pale, full lips. She was in a rush because her boyfriend would be there soon to take her to school.

She observed her reflection once more in the mirror, scrutinizing her every flaw. she sighed, depressed. She had never been to happy with her face, her body, her looks. Her mother and father didn't notice her unhappiness, neither did her boyfriend, Eric McGorrill. She didn't tell them because she was afraid that they would lock her up in some facility somewhere. So she put a happy and bubbly smile on her face for them, so they wouldn't worry. But this was not the time to dwell on it, she needed food.

Melissa grabbed her book bag and bounced down the stairs, two at a time. She entered the kitchen, but before she could sit down at the table, she noticed something out of place. There was a boy her age moodily sitting at the kitchen table. His ruffled brown hair was messed up, _probably_ _by gel_, she thought. She couldn't see his eyes, as they were fixes on his bowl, and he was basically _inhaling _his Cheerios. His clothes were gray, plain, and boring. There was a tight black cord around his neck with a cross. _He's cute._ Melissa thought, _but he looks like he is going to a funeral._

No one else was in sight. _Where's Mom and Dad? _She thought desperately, trying to figure out what to say, he didn't seem like the talkative type. He hadn't noticed her come in, so she spoke, "What are you doing here? In my house? And why?" His head shot up when she spoke. Blue-gray. His eyes were a piercing blue-gray. Melissa swore she almost fainted, those eyes were _intense._ He glared at her immediately, confusing her. What had she done? So she glared right back, apparently surprising him. He also seemed like the type who intimidated others easily. But he wouldn't be so lucky with her.

"Melissa!" Lynne Wu came scurrying into the kitchen. The boy broke eye-contact with Melissa and rolled his eyes at her mother's behaviour, infuriating Melissa even more. No one treated her mother that way! Lynne put her hand on Melissa's shoulder and gestured towards the boy. "This is Cody Jackso-"

"Jackson." He clarified, rudely interrupting Lynne. She smiled at him tightly, clearly upset with his tone and the way he had treated her. Melissa winced with sympathy. Her mother was very precise on how you were allowed to treat her, and this Jackson guy would be no exception.

"Fine. Jackson." Lynne repeated, her tone cold. Jackson's eyes widened, he wasn't expecting that, "Jackson, you are in my house now. You will treat myself, my daughterj and my husband with respect. Or, you can expect to be grounded, and not allowed to leave the house. Am I clear?" Her voice was flat, and it gave no choice. Jackson frowned again,

"Crystal." He replied, before turning back to his cereal. Lynne sighed, her eyes pained. She then turned to Melissa, who was frowning in confusion, looking between her mother and Jackson. Lynne led her to the kitchen, her voice breaking into a soothing whisper.

"Melissa, you know the conversation we had a few months ago? About we taking in a foster kid?" Melissa nodded dumbly, she had remembered that conversation.

--

_Flashback..._

_The Wu's dinner table a few months ago..._

"_Melissa?" Melissa raised her head to see her parents holding hands and nervously smiling at her. She looked at them both suspiciously, "We have something we need to tell you." Melissa's heart plummeted, **they're getting a DIVORCE!** Her mind screamed, her mouth fell open in shock. Her mother seemed to guess what she was going to say and stopped her raging thoughts. "No, sweetie, we **aren't **getting a divorce." Melissa sighed, slumping in her chair in relief._

"_Then, what is it?" She asked, throughly confused. She looked between her parents anxiously, "We're not moving are we?" Her father shook his head in amusement. Melissa frowned, **well what else could it be!?** She yelled at her father silently. She wasn't the panicky type... usually. But they were taking too long to drag out this important news._

_Lynne looked nervously at her husband. Sebastian (Melissa's father) smiled encouragingly at Lynne. She took a deep breath and then turned to Melissa. "We are going to be taking in a foster child." Melissa breathed a sigh of relief once again. That wasn't bad, well, it depended on who the foster kid was. Lynne and Sebastian were looking at her, waiting for her response._

"_Okay." Melissa said reasonably, "When? Who?" The questions spilled out of her mouth uncontrollably, and it took her father, whom she was slightly afraid of, silence her._

"_Enough Melissa." He said quietly, but in a tone that shut her up. "We don't know who or even when yet, but we just wanted for you to know of our decision," He said firmly. Sebastian was a very strict parent and didn't give Melissa a lot of choice or freedom._

_Lynne nodded exuberantly before turning back to Melissa, "We know you've always wanted a sibling, so this is the perfect opportunity, seeing as we won't be having anymore children." Her expression grew somber and her eyes clouded with pain. Lynne's second child had died a few weeks after birth when Melissa was thirteen. Lynne swore after that she would never have another child, even when she really wanted one. She said she couldn't experience that kind of heart break again._

"_So are you okay with this?" Lynne asked her. Melissa broke out of her thoughts and smiled reassuringly at her mother._

"_I'm fine with it."_

_End of flashback..._

_--_

Melissa's eyes widened. She glanced back quickly at Jackson, "I thought you were getting me a _younger _brother or sister, not one that is the same age as me!" She whispered loudly. Lynne looked at her guiltily,

"He's three months older than you." She informed Melissa. Melissa's eyes bulged almost out of her head. She pointed back at Jackson, who was trying to ignore them.

"_Three months older!_" She squeaked, outraged. "_How _could you get someone three-" But lucky for Lynne, Sebastian entered the kitchen. Melissa immediately clammed up and re-entered the the small breakfast nook and took a seat at the table across from Jackson. Her parents had already eaten apparently, and left the two teenagers alone.

The silence was suffocating. Jackson didn't seem to bothered by it and Melissa was trying to make it seem like she didn't mind either. But then her two kittens entered the kitchen, making it easier for her. Their names were Onyx and Gremlin, and they were both female. Gremlin was a Calico, and she was coloured with a clash of orange, black, white, and gray with yellow eyes. She wasn't very affectionate and got angry quickly. Her sister, on the other hand, was plain gray with green eyes and was very affectionate. She would sit on your lap and purr forever if she could. They were both 11-weeks-old and Melissa loved them to bits.

"Hey my girls." Melissa crooned, ignoring Jackson's amused expression. They strutted over to Melissa and jumped up onto her lap. Gremlin hopped onto the table while Onyx stayed in Melissa's lap for a ear scratch. Jackson seemed interested in the cats, and he let Gremlin smell his hand when she traveled to the opposite side of the table. He even smiled slightly when she licked his hand, something that surprised Melissa. Onyx then noticed the newcomer and left Melissa to examine Jackson. She smiled at the two kittens. Gremlin acted more queenly than Onyx, who was a plain klutz.

"What are their names?" Jackson asked quietly, the previous venom that had laced his voice gone. Melissa was shocked at how the two kittens made such a change in him. He had been brooding like, 10 seconds ago and now he was all friendly.

"The gray one is Onyx and the Calico is Gremlin." Melissa responded, "and they're 11-week-old sisters," Melissa added quickly, thinking he may want to know that detail. Jackson just nodded and continued to stroke them gently. Melissa finished her breakfast quickly and took her dishes and put them into the dishwasher. When she straightened up, Jackson was in front of her.

Melissa jumped back, not expecting him to be there. He smiled slightly and Melissa felt something flip over in her chest, her heartbeat speeding up. His expression then changed to one of challenge, "Didn't think a spoiled brat like yourself would be able to take care of your own dishes." He commented, setting his own dishes into the dishwasher. Melissa felt her face heating up and her anger fizzing beneath her veins.

"Not that you know anything about me, nor will you ever." Melissa replied coldly. She thought she saw him frown, but she was distracted by a car honk. She smiled, and went to kiss the kittens good-bye. She called a hurried good-bye to her parents before heading out the door. Well, she tried to head out the door.

"Melissa!?"Melissa cursed, almost out the door, to the loving arms of her boyfriend and away from the strange new boy. But her mother's voice brought her back into the house. She let out a frustrated sigh, ignoring the cocky smirk that played out on Jackson's lips, who had followed her into the front hall.

"Yeah!?" She yelled back,

"Take Jackson with you!" Lynne shouted. Melissa rubbed her temples, trying to calm down. This Jackson was unnerving her and all she wanted was to get away from him. Plus her heart had done weird flip thing when he had been so close to her. It wasn't something she had experienced before.

"But Eric is taking me!" Melissa complained,

"I don't care, take him!" Melissa, sighed, knowing she had lost that fight. She gestured towards the door. Jackson, who had been leaning against the door with his hood up. He pushed himself and headed out the door, brushing by Melissa. His shoulder grazed her shoulder and that aroused that heart-flippy thing again.

She ignored it and left the house. She locked the door and raced to the car, passing by Jackson. She jumped into the front seat, leaning over to brush her lips with Eric's. He looked at her questioningly, "Who's that?" He asked, pointing at Jackson, who seemed to be purposely taking his time to get to the car.

"A foster kid my parents have taken in. He's _really _rude." Melissa told him. Eric looked at her suspiciously, Melissa rolled her eyes, knowing what he was thinking, "_No, _Eric. We're not in love, I just met the guy like, 20 minutes ago. Okay?" When he nodded, She stuck her head out the window, "JACKSON! Are you coming?" Jackson closed the remaining space between him and the car door in just a few seconds.

Melissa glared at him before she turned back to Eric, giving him a warning look. When Jackson had settled in the back, Eric started talking. "I'm Eric."

"Jackson."

"So you're the one who is going to be living with _my_ girlfriend." Eric began, enunciating the word 'my'. Melissa groaned and pressed her face to the window. This was going to be a _long _ride.

_**Don't hate me because I redid the story!**_

_**Please review!**_


	2. Chapter II

**Opposites Will Attract**

Chapter 2

**You guys will have to thank Serendipity45 for this update, if she hadn't PMed me, asking me to hurry up there wouldn't be another chapter just yet.**

**But whatever, enjoy!**

**Melissa P.O.V.**

I couldn't get rid of him. He was driving me _nuts, _he seemed to always be in the same room as me at school. Thanks to my mom, we had _every _class together and she seemed to have asked the teachers to let us either sit beside, or close to each other. He wore only a frown around any person, but he reserved his cocky smirk for when we were alone. Thanks once again to my mom, that was often. I mean, I'm not the kind of person to hate someone because their religion, culture, skin colour, or how poor they were, but this guy was driving me crazy. And I'm pretty sure he was having fun with it.

It had been only two weeks and this, _Jackson _guy was ruining my life. My own boyfriend wouldn't hang out with me because Jackson was always hanging around me, and neither would my other friends. One upside though, the jocks had left me alone. They always had me do their homework, and Eric couldn't (or wouldn't ) do anything about it. But as I looked around the alley outside the school, I realized that glorious strike would end.

I had escaped to this narrow alley for lunch. It was right next to the school, most of the goths or emos usually came here to smoke and/or cut themselves. Today it was empty. I came here to think, and to escape Jackson, who was honestly becoming my little lapdog. Well, not _little. _I think I also came here to escape Eric. Don't get me wrong, he _is_ a nice guy. But I don't think I'm in love with him. I am starting to think that the only reason I had started dating him was so I could feel _loved._

I mean, come on. I'm a awkward looking 17-year-old with an 82average. I'm hit by my father when I don't get perfect grades, because A- isn't good enough for him. I am pushed around by the kids at school, I don't have any friends that I trust enough to tell anything personal to. And I have a boyfriend whom I'm probably sure is cheating on me, and then who acts like he loves me. I live a double life, between the flowery clothing, attitude, and make-up that I use here, in this neighbourhood. And then there is the way I act and dress in the Chavez neighbourhood.

Yes, Chavez. I think that is also Jackson's old neighbourhood. I hang out there most of the time, you know, when I'm not studying or when I can escape this Godforsaken neighbourhood. The people there make me feel better about myself. And I'm well respected. I'm a good fighter, and that is how I've proved myself. You see, when I was 4, some guy tried to rape me. Calm down, no, he didn't actually rape me... I hit him with a block of wood that was lying around on the ground.

I was to young to truly understand how bad of a situation I had been in, so my parents never knew, because I never told them. But as I grew older, and I heard stories... I realized how bad a situation I had been in. I knew my parents wouldn't believe me, they rarely did. They believed, well my father anyway, that a child without an A+ average wasn't trustworthy. My mother was, in truth, a very nice mother, but she couldn't (or just didn't) listen. My father, has only planted fear and resentment between us and in our father/daughter relationship.

But anyway, as I grew older, I realized that I needed to learn how to defend myself in case I ever faced that kind of situation again. So I got a job at a karate dojo to pay for lessons, and 5 years later, I'm one of the best fighters in Chavez. Big Jay says it's because I'm so quick. I'm skinny and able to flip around quite quickly. Big Jay is a friend of mine, he was the first one to be nice to me when I stumbled across the 'church' he runs.

Big Jay was a guy who used to be a hoodlum. He did drugs, drank, and smoked. He one day, apparently woke up and realized he had to get his life together. He said that the 'Lord Jesus Christ' and the 'Almighty Father' were the reasons he had been able to get sober. Now he ran a church (and a mechanics shop) for kids whose lives are in the crapper.

A familiar voice broke into my thoughts, one of the voices that haunted my dreams, "Hey Mellie!" A sarcastic, baby voice greeted. My insides turned cold when I recognized the voice. I rose from the squatting position I had been in for the last half-hour. My body protested the movement but I ignored it. One thing I had been taught was that you needed to _control _your body, not let it control you. My muscles tensed, like I was preparing for a fight. Which I was. It was Joshua McCully. The stupid Irish jock. He was head of the football team and dumber than... Taylor Hagan! Who was his girlfriend, they both _loved _to torture me. On my looks, my clothing, my culture, anything.

"What the hell do you want?" I asked rudely, an icy knot forming in my stomach when I noticed the rest of the team behind him. He smiled cruelly at me, frightening me even more. All of his teammates were very buff, and although I'm a good fighter... I'm no match for them. And he knew that.

"Aw... is Mellie not in a very good mood today?" He inquired mockingly, inching towards me. He had apparently signaled his little friends as well because I saw them closing in on me and then felt my back hit the wall. _Crap!_ I thought, panicking, I looked around frantically, trying to find _some_ way to escape. There were none.

"What the hell _do you want!?" _I demanded again, putting my fists up defensively. The team laughed as one at my fighting stance. I swallowed the lump in my throat with difficulty, fear almost overtaking me.

"A little fight, perhaps...? I do owe you some pain..." His silky voice suggested. I cursed, last week he had dumped some homework on me. It was easy, but I gave him all the wrong answers... he hadn't liked that. I regretted that now... I was going to get my ass kicked. _Dammit!_ I cursed as they grew closer to me.

"She's busy at the moment." A new voice echoed throughout the alley. The jocks turned around, frowning. It was Jackson. I scowled, _what is _**_he_**_ doing here? _My mind demanded furiously. _You don't need help!_ The voice in my head informed me, _you are a Wu. You don't need help to fight these bastards off._ "So you'd all best be off." He smiled at them, a little dangerously.

He was leaning against the wall, dressed in his usual gray attire. Josh and his cronies smiled and approached him. "So...you think that _you_ can tell _us _what to do." His minions chuckled along obediently. Jackson pushed himself off the wall and closed the gap between him and Josh. There wasn't even a gap left between them and I amusedly watched as Josh broke out into a cold sweat.

"Yeah, I do." Jackson growled, his expression darkening, "Now beat it, before I hurt you." Josh, knowing of the gory rumours that had been told around the schoolyard, whitened. It was very amusing, I never had thought that Josh would (or could) be frightened off by a new kid.

"You're crazy, man..." He said, backing off. He gestured towards his 'slaves' "Come on, let's get out of here." They had almost left when Josh turned back to me, "This isn't over." And then he was gone.

I couldn't control my rage, although I tried. I probably could've tried _harder, _maybe, but I wasn't in the mood to keep my face either cheery or emotionless. _I could've handled them myself. _I thought grumpily to myself. Jackson, who had been watching the team leave, turned back to face me. He look a little nervous, probably scared that my reaction would be freaking out and then telling my parents... getting him kicked out of our house...

I marched towards him, trembling. "I could have handled them myself." I snapped, clenching my fists together. Jackson's expression changed from worried to infuriated. He glared fiercely at me, apparently surprised when I didn't get frightened by his glare. He seemed to use his intimidation to his advantage, but he had lucked out with me. He didn't scare me.

"Oh yeah, you looked in control with your back up against a wall. And of course the 17 football players surrounding you." I glared at him, not feeling that that sarcastic remark deserved a response. He, however continued, "What did you do, anyway?"

"None of your damn business!" I shouted at him. He looked surprised by my outburst and let me pass. I stormed out of the alley and headed back to school, leaving him with his thoughts.

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	3. Chapter III

**Opposites Will Attract**

Chapter 3

_**Here's the next chapter,**_

_**enjoy!**_

**Jackson P.O.V**

As I remembered the way Melissa had just stormed out of that narrow alley earlier today, I couldn't help but feel angry. _I_ had helped _her_ out, and yet all she had done was snap at me. I really didn't understand her, and I was getting the sneaking suspicion that no one really did.

I had been watching her closely since we had that fateful meeting two weeks ago at her breakfast table. Since she had glowered resentfully at me and rendered me speechless with her sharp words. Since she had protested my arrival in her home, and argued 'quietly' with her mother about it.

When my social worker, Judy McGuff, had shown me the picture of my brand new 'family,' I had been skeptical, as always. The three of them looked perfect on paper, as they always did. I always received pictures of the families I was being sent to. But the past two weeks had sort of changed my thinking that they were the perfect family.

I mean, don't get me wrong, I still thought of them as rich, spoiled newpsies. But the connection between Melissa and her parents was just plain... weird. Melissa's mother just seemed to be... there, not really speaking to Melissa, not really ever meeting her eyes. She didn't seem to want to communicate with the world, and so she didn't very often. She also didn't seem to really mind about what Melissa did. She occasionally speak sharply to her, but other than that... nothing.

But it was Melissa's relationship with her father is what really freaked me out. Every time he was in a room or entered a room containing Melissa, she grew pale and shut up. Her lips would purse, and she refused to speak above a very quiet tone or she would just leave. And when they _were _in a room together, the way he looked at Melissa was even freakier. His beady eyes went cold. An icy look with a mixture of disgust, disappointment, and contempt burned in his hollow black eyes. Melissa would always shrink, as if looks actually _could _kill, her own eyes overcome with fear and sadness.

I had also noticed that Melissa wore long sleeve shirts most of the time. Even when the weather demanded otherwise. When I had examined her face more closely, I realized her face was a little bigger than normal and there was a thick, powdery residue on her face most of the time. I guessed that it was cover-up, though I couldn't be sure. Make-up wasn't really my area of expertise. I had also begun to realize that Melissa had been wearing it since I had arrived at her house.

Which brought me to one conclusion: Melissa's father hit her.

It was the only logical explanation I could think of at the moment. I didn't expect it, since I had thought that her life was perfect. It was a little confusing to me, however, why I cared so much. I usually avoided any contact with my ex-foster families, but yet I had done everything I could in my power to be near Melissa at all times. Which just really wasn't me, I was generally a very quiet, withdrawn person. But somehow, with Melissa, it was different.

A quiet knock interrupted my thoughts abruptly. I shifted from my laying position on the queen-size bed in the spacious room I had been given, and sat up properly. I breathed in deeply and closed my eyes, mentally preparing myself for whomever was at the door, and whatever they had to say.

"Come in," I called, leaning back against the headboard. The door opened slowly, creaking loudly. The open door revealed the very girl that had been occupying my thoughts for the past two weeks.

Melissa smiled timidly at me and twisted her hands anxiously behind her back, "it's time for dinner," she informed me quietly. I observed her for a moment before lifting one of my rough, calloused hand to my eyes and rubbing them tiredly. I felt her penetrating gaze on me, waiting patiently for an answer.

"I'm coming," I sighed. Lifting myself off of the thick, comfortable pillows and duvet covers, I approached Melissa slowly, who stayed halted in the doorway. For a moment, we weren't more than an inch apart. I was so close to her that I could easily count her eyelashes. It crossed my mind how easily I could kiss her by just bending down a little.

My breath caught in my throat when neither of us moved. We stood there, for who knows how long, just staring at each other. I saw Melissa's own breath caught in her throat and she nearly gagged on it. The sexual tension was thick in the air and it took Mrs. Wu to break us out of our reverie.

"Are you guys coming?!" She yelled from the base of the staircase. Melissa and I immediately jolted away from each other and frantically backed away. Melissa blushed scarlet at the speechlessness that had been caused by the lack of space between us. I myself felt my own cheeks reddening. "Melissa?! Cody?!" The use of my first name made me wince, both Mr. and Mrs. Wu refused to call me 'Jackson,' no matter how many times I asked.

"We-we're coming," Melissa stammered. She looked as confused as I felt at the moment. She turned away from me quickly and stepped hurriedly towards the stairs and headed down to her mother. I stayed rooted just inside my room for a few more seconds to try and moisten my sudden dry mouth before following Melissa, my head reeling with questions. The most prominent being, _What the hell just happened?!_

--

**Melissa P.O.V.**

I think he was on to me. Jackson, I mean. At the dinner table, his eyes kept sweeping over me. His piercing blue gaze examined my face and body closely. And when he wasn't, he was looking at my father very suspiciously. I think he was starting to figure out the reasons for my heavy make-up and my unflattering clothing.

I was starting to panic. If he put two and two together, and figured out how abusive my father was, he might tell someone. And I couldn't handle that. I didn't even want to _imagine_ how much my family would disapprove if Child Services got involved... who knows what they would do. Plus, if my father was taken away, I would probably be disowned for _dishonouring_ the family name by _betraying _my father.

I looked around the table nervously. My mother was oblivious to the looks both Jackson and my father were giving me. Jackson's gaze was both searching and concerned. But my father, who was eating stiffly, would stop occasionally to glare at me. I was expecting trouble from him later. I had received 82 on a math test earlier today, and since he didn't accept grades lower than 90 on any subject very well... I was in for a beating soon.

I was always studying. My constant goal in life was to have his approval, just once. So I studied so hard that without make-up, I looked pale and sickly. When there were those rare occasions that I didn't wear make-up, my teachers would be concerned of my state of health. A friend of mine tattled to the guidance counselor that I was always studying, so they dragged me into his office for two hours. Mr. Hooper said that I over-studied and that I needed to get out and enjoy myself fully before I grew 'old and wrinkly.' Not that his words made any difference.

I inwardly winced again as the cruel eyes of my father were set on me, his disappointment clear. I desperately wanted to get upstairs, so I stuffed the last remains of my steak into my mouth. It was to much food for my mouth and I choked on it. My father's eyes shot to me once more and I faintly heard Jackson let out a light cough, obviously hiding a chuckle.

I glared at him briefly before grabbing my water glass and draining it to ease my retching throat. Finally finished, I rose from the table and headed quickly towards the marble counter. I quickly threw my dishes into the dishwater, cringing at the loud clatter.

"Do you _mind, _daughter?" The sharp voice cut across my ears.

"Sorry father," I murmured, tears stinging my eyelids at the embarassment. I could feel Jackson's gaze burning into me, but I avoided all eye-contact. I could _feel_ his curiosity gnawing at him, but I ignored it. I nearly ran out of the kitchen, and bounded up the stairs, two at a time. I almost smiled when the door leading to my room entered my line of vision. I then finally escaped to the safety of my two kittens, and the four walls that surrounded them.

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	4. Chapter IV

Opposites Will Attract

**Opposites Will Attract**

**Chapter 4**

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**girlyworld95: **_I'm glad you're so impressed; I hope I can keep it up._

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**Undefinedliving: **_Thanks! Melissa was always looking for approval/love in the show. I thought that her dating someone she didn't love would make sense._

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**I am SOOO sorry that it has taken me so long to update. It just with school, the whole depression thing, therapy, and my other stories, there just really hasn't been enough time for me to really sit down and write. This chapter, is once again dedicated to the one and only Serendipity545, for her persistence and commitment to get me to update. But anywho, read on, faithful readers!!**

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**Melissa POV**

I was doing homework with Eric in my room. He's hopeless at English, and since I'm not terrible at it, I decided to help him. Especially since we have a big grammar test tomorrow, and that isn't one of his strong points either. And we weren't getting anywhere, since Eric kept getting everything messed up, and then his urges to make-out so he could 'clear his head' so he could study harder. Since he is quite good at both kissing and persuasion, I had given in more than one occasion this afternoon. But now I was serious, I _had _to study. My father always paid close attention to my tests or projects, anything that gave out marks actually. So I needed a good grade.

"So… what's a semi-colon again?" Eric asked confusedly. I chuckled quietly at his furrowed brow, concentrating on the page in front of him. His pencil was in his mouth, the pearly white teeth chewing relentlessly on the eraser in confusion. As I observed for a moment, I thought that I was being picky. Eric was a great guy; I probably just hadn't known him long enough to admit that I loved him. And I was berating myself for being so insecure and suspicious, since I would probably sabotage the relationship if I kept this up.

"Oh, um... it's that thing with a period on top and a coma on the bottom, it is usually used to link independent clauses not joined by a co-ordinating conjunctions." I read out of the textbook patiently for the umpteenth time. But since it _was _from the textbook, it was too 'scientific,' Eric had no clue what the hell I had just said. And his expression confirmed my suspicion. His blue eyes stared at me widely; his sandy blond hair flopped in his eyes. His mouth was parted slightly, staring at me.

I sighed deeply and leaned forward to explain it in my own words again. But a knock on the door interrupted my lecture. Jackson stuck his head in the door, entering fully when he saw that we weren't too busy. I smiled slightly at him, my smile widening when I noticed Gremlin in his arms. She had really taken to him, and actually permitted him to fuss over her and to hold her. For instance, at the moment his big calloused hands were gently stroking her, and she was purring, not trying to escape as she usually did with me.

"Yeah? What do you want? " Eric asked rudely. I looked over at him, shocked at his tone, but noticing a jealous look on his face. I sighed, and massaged my temples, trying to calm down. As much as Jackson still annoyed the hell out of me, I knew he was going to be here for a while, so I had better get used to the idea of him. But Eric was seemingly incapable to be nice to him, meaning I had to break them both out of a verbal battle a lot of the time.

"To talk to Melissa, Rich Boy," Jackson's tone was much colder than Eric's, and for the first time since Jackson had entered my room, I noticed his very annoyed expression. It had softened when he had entered for some reason, probably because of Gremlin, but Eric had infuriated him again. Joy.

"What is it, Jackson?" I asked tiredly, looking up at him. He scowled at me, and then licked his lips, and glanced around my room, which I had decorated to look exactly like my old room back in Korea. Helped with the homesickness. This hit me quite often, despite the fact of traveling there for Christmas break and summer to spend with old friends and my family.

Jackson opened his mouth to say something, but then closed it, "never mind." He mumbled quietly. So quietly that I barely heard what he had just said. But I caught it, just before he left, shutting the door firmly behind him. I stared after him, confused at that little scene that had just taken place. But Eric was just happy that he had left. Because apparently, he had ideas that he was going to act on.

He rolled over, on top of me, slightly squashing me from underneath him. The books, papers, and pencils left the duvet and plopped onto the soft carpet. I, exasperated, tried to push him off of me because we still had lots of studying to do. But every time I tried to remove the annoyance that he was, he just pinned me down again and covered my mouth with his lips. I sighed and then gave in, knowing that there wasn't any use trying to stop him.

His tongue penetrated my mouth, and started to explore. I accepted it, and locked my arms around his neck. The kiss I didn't expect to be anything special, and I didn't feel it was. And I certainly didn't expect for it to turn into anything more. But apparently Eric did. Because the next moment I felt his hand slipping underneath my shirt and sliding up my ribs towards my chest.

I stiffened, and drew away from him, "Eric…" I whispered, trying to push the hand off of my bra strap and _out _of my shirt. I wasn't ready for sex. Eric knew, as he had been trying for a while, but he hadn't had much luck. I had been quite firm, and he hadn't exactly taken it quite well. Like now, for instance.

"Melissa." He stated, looking up at me, his blue eyes sharp. But, I noticed, he did _not_ remove his hand from my shirt. "I have had enough of your flirting—"

"_Flirting_?!" I gasped, jumping away from him. He observed me calmly as my face turned as red as a tomato, "when have I ever_ flirted_ about this subject?!" I was yelling now, and I was pretty sure that Jackson could hear us, but I didn't care at the moment, I was too angry. I could barely even see anymore. It may sound strange that I got this upset this quickly, but it was just that we had done this dance so many times, and I just wished that he would stop pressuring me. "Has it _ever _occurred to you that I am telling the truth when I say I'm not ready to _sleep with you?!_ This isn't exactly an _easy _decision to make!!"

"Keep your voice _down!_" He commanded sharply, rising off the mattress and trapping me in the corner of my room. I gulped, Eric's eyes were flashing dangerously, and he didn't always keep his cool when he was angry. His face was really close to mine, and his lips were pulled up in a sneer. A scary thought crossed my mind that he was going to hit me. But that was crazy, this was Eric, he couldn't harm a fly. But the glare wasn't very reassuring all the same.

"Eric…" I managed out, "I think it's time for you to leave…" But Eric didn't move, and I was getting more scared by the second. He was leaning closer to me, but right now all I wanted was for him to leave. My limbs were shaking, and I was close to screaming. Memory was surging through my mind and I could no longer see Eric, but rough hands grabbing at me, and they weren't Eric's.

"I'm pretty sure that she said _leave_." A voice came from my doorway. Eric stepped away from me, and I sank to the floor in relief, wrapping my arms around my knees and burying my head in my knees, hiding my sight with my long hair. But I could still hear. "So leave. _Now._" Jackson's voice was as sharp as it was when he 'rescued' me from the alleyway.

I didn't see Eric leave, but I heard his footsteps growing fainter. I was trying _not _to faint. I was breathing deeply, staying in the same huddled-up position. Suddenly there was another hand covering mine. Enveloping mine more like, because it was a big hand, compared to my petite one.

"Melissa?" Jackson's soft voice was concerned. "Are you okay? What happened?" I was slowly calming down, and when I did, I was able to think clearly. I wasn't about to let Jackson see that I was vulnerable, so when I looked up, my expression was a little more cheerful, but it was still a dry expression.

"You know what happened," I said, licking my very dry lips and trying to speak calmly, "I know you heard the yelling, but, yes, I'm fine. And once again, I seem to need you to get me out of bad situations." I was trying to lighten the conversation, and although Jackson's face was still concerned, his eyes grew a little amused at that sentence.

"Well why don't we both try staying out of trouble for once, just to shake things up." There was an underlying meaning to his words, and I took a moment to examine his face, to see if I could decipher what he had meant. But Jackson was a closed door, with a key not many people hold possession. And as good as I am at reading people, I was having no luck with Jackson.

I opened my mouth to ask what he meant, but a loud voice interrupted me, "Melissa?! Cody?! I'm home!!" My mom yelled. I heard the loud thump of her bags dropping in the front hall. Her footsteps loudly made their way to the kitchen, and the banging of pots and pans were heard as she started to make dinner.

Jackson looked back at me, and frown forming on his face, "would you be able to explain why your mother is unable to call me Jackson?" He asked me quietly, making me smile. I noticed that we were still kind of holding hands. I looked at the joined hands and blushed, trying to pull my palm from under his much larger hand. But he didn't let me. He squeezed my slender palm gently, "and are you _sure _you're okay?" he was still worried.

"Yeah... I'm fine." He still looked unconvinced, "I'm telling the truth! _I'm fine_." I ripped my hand from his and stood up quickly, forcing him to do the same. "Come on," I said quickly, knowing that he would keep on prying until I cracked. And with my awful ability to handle constant pressure, cracking and spilling my guts probably wouldn't take to long. So I did what I always do. I ran. Well, not literally, but I certainly got out of the situation by making a dumb excuse, like always.

"Um... I have to go ask my mom something," yeah, _I know_, a _really _pathetic excuse. But I _had _to get out of this situation. And unfortunately, Jackson saw through that charade, and he called me on it.

"Really?" He asked, his eyebrow cocking upwards, "what do you need to ask her?" _Damn him. _I thought, trying to think of something good. Nothing. I opened and closed my mouth several times, making me look like a fish out of water. Jackson chuckled at my paralyzed state, making my cheeks turn even redder. I was sure I looked like a splotchy tomato now, so I bolted. Without answering, I ran out of my room, ducking my head the entire way. When I reached the kitchen, my mother was there, _kissing _the pool boy, Jose.

**Ooooh... cliffhanger, I'm sorry, I just couldn't resist. I once again like to thank to Serendipity545, who has been **_**so **_**supportive and**_** so **_**patient with me (even when I didn't deserve it), I really hope you like the chapter, because since it seems to take me so long to update, I want the chapters to be worth the wait. But anyway, please review and tell me what you think.**

**Song Of The Sparrow**


	5. Chapter V

Opposites Will Attract

**Opposites Will Attract**

**Chapter 5**

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**Title: **Opposites Will Attract

**Chapter: **5/12

**Word Count: **4784

**Pairing: **Melissa and Jackson

**Author: **Song Of The Sparrow

**Fandom:**Flight 29 Down

**Disclaimer: **If I owned it, Taylor would have stayed a bitch, Melissa would have been stronger, and Jackson would have liked Melissa since the beginning.

**Summary: **Melissa is surprised with a new addition to the family one morning. He's rude, and he likes to taunt her. But nevertheless she feels something other that hate for him.

**--**

**watched 2 much tv: **_I know, I'm really sorry._

**Carshizzle Mathmel: **_Thanks! I'm slowly improving, but I'm getting there._

**girlyworld95: **_It may take longer because I'll be leaving on vacation soon. I'll still be writing but I'll be without Internet. Gah! I don't think I'll last that long without it._

**Serendipity545: **_Gah! I know!! I feel awful/ashamed, it was terrible, wasn't it? It was late at night when I updated it, so I was extremely tired._

**abovetherim: **_Thanks. Serendipity545 really has been a huge help. Quite a few of these chapters probably wouldn't have been posted if it wasn't for her. It's funny how sometimes all you really need is a kick in the behind (not literally) to get working._

**Pure Magical: **_Mel's dad in this fic only hits Mel. It happens often enough to those of an Asian descent. I know a couple of people are hit by there parents because their grades aren't perfect. _

**soccerchick8: **_I was just kidding about the 'awesome' thing, I didn't mind how many there were. Would you be able to update __**your **__F29D fics soon as well?_

**flight29downgirl2841: **_I'll try, but as I said to girlyworld95, it may take longer because of vacation._

**--**

_When I reached the kitchen, my mother was in there, __**kissing **__the pool boy, Jose._

_--_

**Jackson POV **

I was close behind Melissa as she bolted from her room (and me) and rushed for the kitchen. She isn't a very quick runner so I really didn't need to try very hard to keep up. What I wanted to do is grab Melissa and pin her against a wall and then ki- I mean, make her answer the very many questions I had for her. Like, why in the _hell_ was she hanging around a guy who was clearly not right for her, and one who was acting so suspiciously sex-driven that he _must_ have been getting busy with some other girls behind Melissa's back. Whether she knew this or not I really have no idea, but I didn't see love or adoration in her eyes when she looked at him. I saw fear, and not the kind of fear that he would hurt her physically, but hurt her emotionally. Probably by leaving her alone. Almost as if she needed the love that badly that she would stay with a guy like Eric... maybe that was it.

Melissa came to an abrupt stop, jerking me from my thoughts and almost making me crash into her. I was about to ask what was wrong, when I caught what she was staring at. Her mother was _making out _with that Spanish pool boy... what was his name? Jesse, maybe? It doesn't matter. What _does,_ however, is the fact that the Jesse guy was like, 19, and Mrs. Wu (if she refuses to call me Jackson, I refuse to call her Lynne) had to be in her forties. So, that was gross, but I knew it would be heart-breaking for Melissa. I mean, come on, the _pool boy? _She would probably think that she should have noticed this. I raised a hand to lay on her shoulder, to lead her away from this betrayal. Unfortunately, she spoke before I had the chance.

"Jose?" _That's his name! _I thought to myself in triumph, "Mom? _What in the hell are you two doing!"_ Her voice held traces of unrecognizable danger that was unfamiliar to me; maybe she wasn't the sweet, innocent girl that I thought she was.

Jose and Mrs. Wu tore their lips from one another, turning their shocked gazes to us. Mrs. Wu flushed a deeper red than the one that already tinged her cheeks. Jose's own cheeks were flushed as well; not from embarrassment like Mrs. Wu's were, but flushed from the attempts to keep himself under control. They were staring at us in shock, Jose's gaze holding a glint of dangerous anger in his black eyes. Mrs. Wu had untangled her slim frame from Jose and distanced herself from him. But I wasn't paying too much attention to them though. I was keeping my eyes on Melissa, and how she was reacting. The answer would be... not well.

Her warm brown eyes were wide and all teared up. Her mouth was trembling slightly as she observed the scene that lay in front of her. Her tiny fists were clenched tightly, and they shook, in anger or in betrayal, I'm not sure which. She seemed to be trying extremely hard to keep her tears in check, and barely succeeding. She had opened and closed her mouth several times, trying and failing to find the right words (if there _were_ any). I mean, what do you say to your mother, who you just caught making out with your _pool boy?_

As it turns out, she never did say anything else. Instead, she ran. She just bolted from her spot on the black and white tiled kitchen floor and ran out the door. I didn't realized she had moved until the door had slammed shut. Blinking rapidly, I looked back and forth from where Melissa had been, to the front door, to Jose and Mrs. Wu. They still remained still, unmoving, although Jose was now giving me subtle hints to get the _hell_ out of there. And believe me, he didn't need to ask twice. I turned heel, and strode out the front door quickly, trying if Melissa was still in the area.

She was gone. And so was one of her parent's cars, leaving no traces or clues to suggest where she might have gone. Rubbing my temples in small circular motions, I tried to calm myself. I was fuming; not at Melissa, but at the hopelessness of her parents. My parents hadn't exactly been perfect either, but then again... maybe our parents were more alike than I thought. Only, my mother was usually hopped up on painkillers, and my father, had drank most of the time, and instead of beating me, he beat my mother. Come to think of it, Melissa had it worse off. I hadn't been harmed... only ignored. I bet that Melissa wished she _was _ignored.

But that was for another day. At the moment, I needed to find Melissa. I didn't know how she took bad news, but bolting from the kitchen and driving off didn't seem like a good sign. The only problem was the fact that I still didn't really know Melissa, so finding her might be a bit of a challenge. So I had to gather everything I knew about her, or guessed about her, and string it together. Since I didn't have a car, and I didn't have the keys to the other Wu's car (and there was no way I was going back in that house), I would have to walk. Where? I wasn't sure yet, but as I set off down the street, a thought crossed my mind, making me grin as I realized I already knew where she was.

--

**Melissa POV**

Most people, when they get upset, they choose to visit a bright sunny place to calm them down. Not me. I wish that a bright, beautiful place would make me feel better, but it didn't. God knows I've tried often enough, but it just never seemed to help at all. I found that dark, depressing places helped me feel better, instead of making me feel worse as it would a normal person. So, I was back in that dark alleyway beside the school. Weird though isn't it? The only places to make me feel better were places like dark, damp, _alleyways._ I must have been dropped on my head at birth. It certainly would explain a lot. Like how I ran instead of staying at the house to come up with more than, _'what in the hell are you two doing?' _Pathetic. Absolutely pathetic.

I couldn't seem to process the aforementioned event and information. _My mother, _Lynne Wu, had been cheating on my father with our _pool boy. _I never had thought her to be flighty or floozy. I would never have thought that she would _ever _cheat on my dad. I thought they were happy, or at least with each other. They had always seemed like the perfect married couple, and they had been together for eighteen years. Now I wonder how many times in those eighteen had my mom hooked up with another man. And I wonder _how many _men. Had this been the first time with Jose? Had they gone past kissing? How long had she been seeing him?

All these questions zoomed through my head. More and more questions were popping up, and the possible answers scared me beyond belief. Them getting divorced scared me, because I've seen what broken families can do to a person, and I didn't want to be one of those kids. And I most certainly didn't want my dad to get sole custody of me. If he convinced the judge that my mother wasn't fit to take care of me, my life would go from semi-hell, to full-blown hell. I didn't even want to imagine what he would do to me. If I did, I would probably vomit.

I glanced at the entranceway of the alley when I heard a twig snap. It may have been a stone crunching, but that doesn't matter. What did matter was the fact that it may be Joshua and his gang of over-sized apes. It wasn't likely that it was him, but who knows? He _still _hadn't gotten his revenge, thanks to Jackson. Neither had he been able to dump anymore homework on me, once again thanks to Jackson. You know sometimes I wonder if I _don't _hate having him follow me all the time. He has made my life a whole easier... to an extent. Eric and my other friends still don't really talk to me at school, unless we're in class. But the jocks leave me alone for the most part, except for occasional sneers in the hall.

My dad has also been leaving me alone. In a few days I could leave off the the cover-up and heavy clothing. All I had left were a few fading bruises, although they were still prominent enough to take precautions. I credit that... again... to Jackson, who seemed to always be near me at home. I was now positive that he knew about the whole 'abusive father' thing. Bless his heart, maybe my parents taking him in wasn't the worst decision they had ever made. Maybe a divorce wouldn't be such a bad thing either. I could maybe ask the judge to go live with my aunt Elizabeth, who was one of the coolest people I had ever met. She was also my godmother, so, I'm sure she wouldn't mind taking me in. But then, where would Jackson go?

"Melissa?" I jumped to my feet in surprise at the noise. It was... Jackson. His quiet voice had startled me to the point that I was trembling. He took slow, careful steps towards me, his expression worried. I contemplated backing away as he got closer to me, and considered running away or insisting that I was fine. But I wasn't and he knew that. He had reached me now, and stood in front of me. I lowered my gaze from his intense blue stare, still trembling. But he wasn't having that, so he hooked a couple of his fingers under my chin and gently guided it upwards, "Mel..." It was the first time he had called me by my nickname, and for some reason, I was enlightened by it.

I was suddenly overcome by a strong urge. An urge to close the small gap between our mouths and to kiss him. It was as if something fiery had been unearthed somewhere inside me, and that thing was demanding that join our lips together. That I taste him, and bring him close to me. I wanted someone close to me, someone who truly cared for me, and I knew that Jackson did. It was funny, though, as I realized that he did in fact, care for me, even though he hadn't known me for very long compared to the people I had grown up with. And the fact that he cared about me soothed and excited me beyond belief.

I was pondering whether or not to listen to the urges, but decided not to, considering I still had a boyfriend and I would not stoop to my mother's level. I pondered whether or not to brush him off yet again and tell him I was fine. But I couldn't. I didn't want to. I wanted comfort, I wanted closeness, I wanted someone there for me. And then the entire day suddenly caught up to me, and a rush of tiredness shot through me. The encounter with Eric, and then with my mom and Jose. I was exhausted, both from studying so hard to meet my dad's expectations, and from denying Eric sex, and now from dealing with my mother's fling. I couldn't do it, I'm just one person. Involuntarily, I collapsed, but luckily Jackson caught me.

He held me tightly against him, one muscular arm around my waist, pressing me into his torso, while his left hand stroked my hair hesitantly. I buried my head into the crevice of his neck, sudden tears sliding out of my eyes and onto him, soaking his shirt and skin to my extreme embarrassment. But he didn't seem to mind, he just held onto me tighter. He was comfortingly shushing my choked sobs, which I had held back for too long. His cheek grazed mine as he lowered his head to my ear. His lips brushed my bare skin, and my tears stopped abruptly altogether as shivers shot down my spine.

But my shaking breath didn't. Having him so close to me, with his arms wrapped around me, and his lips on my ear didn't help the trembling either. I had never felt this way about a boy before. These feelings that seemed to surface when he was around me were completely unfamiliar to me, and I certainly hadn't experienced them with _Eric._ So what was it about this boy that could evoke these feelings? How was he any different than the guys at school?

"Mel..." Jackson's voice was regretful, "your... mother is going to be worried. We should probably head back now." I didn't want to move, I wanted to stay in this position forever, with someone who cared, holding me, shielding me from the troubles and problems in my life. But I couldn't, and I unfortunately knew that. So I shakily drew back from him, blushing fire engine red at the sight of the wet patch on his T-shirt. If Jackson noticed the patch, he didn't say anything about it. He instead kept his stare on my face.

"Thank you." I whispered gratefully, not sure if I was thanking him for coming to find me, or for comforting me... or both. Jackson shook his head in response, refusing to take my thanks. He didn't let go of my hand, I noticed numbly. His rough calloused hand made my own small hand tingle, although I pretended otherwise. He started leading me away from the alleyway, and to my dad's car, which I had left a ways from the entranceway.

I headed for the driver's seat, but Jackson wouldn't let me. "Oh, no you don't." He started, pulling me away from the car, "I'm driving." He looked quite firm, and I knew there was no use to argue. So I handed him the keys and jumped into the passenger seat of the car.

--

**Jackson POV**

We had been driving for awhile in silence when Melissa spoke up, "where are you going? You were supposed to take a left back there. I thought you said we had to head back." Her confused voice sounded slightly suspicious. I looked over at her, the tear tracks leaving trails down her face. She had noticed, once we were in the car, that her tears had made it apparent that she was wearing cover-up, so she had washed it off with a cloth in the car. Without the cover-up, she looked... beautiful. Not that she hadn't looked it beforehand, with the make-up on, it had just looked a little funny. But now, her natural skin tone shone through, as if celebrating the lack of powder piled on. Granted, now I could see a couple of gray spots on her face, ones that made my head pound with fury. But I knew that making a fuss about those would help her at all, so I kept my anger to myself.

Instead, I grinned down at her, making her blush, "you'll see." One of her thin, slanted, ebony eyebrows rose in suspicion. I just chuckled and turned my eyes back to the road, but I could still feel her gaze on me.

I didn't know what to feel. My heart had ached for her when I saw her upset. My heart lifted when I saw her smile. My heart sank when her words to me were scornful, but rose again when her kind words and her genuine smile was _for _me. I didn't know what to make of these feelings, because they damn sure weren't something I had experienced before. But I was getting a sneaking suspicion that I knew what they were. But I wasn't going to admit it.

We finally pulled into a the parking lot of a _Dairy Queen._ Melissa looked at me questioningly, "why are we here?" She asked curiously.

"We need to talk." I replied simply. She looked confused as she climbed out of the car. We both headed towards the entrance, side-by-side. I was so close to her that I could smell her perfume. Or maybe it was her natural scent, I wasn't sure. It was a light vanilla scent, that refreshed my senses.

Melissa, however, stopped at the doorway, "I'm not hungry," she said tiredly. But I nudged her, forcing her to continue walking.

"You need to eat something. You're in shock, I want you to get some food in you." I ignored her surprised look she gave me. She was still, however, hesitant in getting to the counter. I glared at the impatient server, who was waiting for us to get there. I then grabbed Melissa's hand after momentarily arguing with myself, and pulled her towards the cashier. The server gave a weird look to Melissa, probably because of the bruises, which were still quite easy to see, and then looked suspiciously at me. I frowned deeply at him again, knowing that he suspected me for the bruises. He thankfully didn't say anything, so I just quickly ordered two sundaes, and paid for them myself, despite Melissa's protests.

We found a private area away from the chatter of the rest of the crowd, and sat down at a table. I watched her for a moment, trying to decide what to say. She didn't seem so eager to talk or eat, for all she did was poke her sundae, her head supported by her hand. I frowned at her, "_eat!_" I commanded. She started at that and then reluctantly started eating.

We spent another moment in silence, until Melissa spoke, "well...? What are we going to talk about?"

I shrugged, "I dunno, about what's bugging you?" I spooned the soft white ice cream into my mouth while watching Melissa. She frowned slightly at my words, "and not just the thing... with your mom." She feigned innocence,

"Oh, and what else then?" She asked me. I raised an eyebrow, and she sighed, "fine. What do you want to know?"

"Everything." I stated, knowing that I had won this battle.

Her eyes were weary, "my dad, always maintained a 97.6 grade average while he was in school. He skipped two grades, and was on the honour roll. He graduated top of his class at Peking University, in China. He met my mother when he was on a trip to America. She wanted to stay in America when they wed... so they did. When I was born, he apparently vowed to make me as successful as he had been. Which... meant harsh schooling. He started home-schooling me when I was three, and only stopped when I was enrolled in actual school. From an early age, he started hitting me when my grades were under 90. His view was that I would study hard to avoid the beatings. My... mother... never helped me. When I went to her and complained, she just explained that it was the way he had been raised." Melissa's eyes were starting to look misty. "at first my bruises could be hidden by long-sleeve shirts. But as I got older his beatings started including my face. And then I started wearing this heavy cover-up." Her finish was abrupt. And her explanation did not explore the details to deeply, but I dared a comment.

"Why didn't you call Child Services on him?" I asked carefully, aware that I was treading on dangerously thin ice.

"Because my family definitely would have disowned me." She replied. I stared at her unbelievably. I couldn't believe that her family would do that to her if she reported abusive behaviour, but her serene expression did not lie. A thought vaguely crossed my mind that this may not be unusual for someone with an Asian descent.

Melissa had gone back to her sundae, and when she looked up at me, a small smile crossed her lips, "you're going to have to eventually close your mouth Jackson." She informed me, absentmindedly waving her spoon in the air. I closed it and observed her for a moment, until a question crossed my mind.

"What about Eric?" She halted her spoon in mid-air as the words left my lips. She looked up at me carefully, her face whitening.

"What about him?" She asked cautiously, her face guilty.

"C'mon Mel," I said, surprisingly happy that she let me use her nickname, "you clearly don't love him. Why are you still with him? How long have you been with him?" She was silent for a moment before replying,

"A year."

"That doesn't answer my other question." I reminded her. A wry smile crossed her face, but she kept her eyes on her half-finished sundae.

"My parents pretty much ignore me, unless of course there is some Newpsie event that they need to take me to." Her smile was gone, "so I look for other ways, I guess. Eric was just one way to get... love." She blushed, "But I don't love him... I think that's mostly why I haven't let him get as far as... well... you know." Her face was scarlet now and she was looking anywhere but at me.

The next few minutes were spent in total silence. I kept glancing up at her, wanting to say something more, but I wasn't sure what. Finally, I came to the conclusion that she needed someone to relate to. So I decided to tell her about my experiences with my parents. I was nervous, not knowing how she would take everything. But she deserved that much.

"My dad... went to jail when I was four," I began, the simple phrase catching Melissa's attention, as she looked up at me questioningly, "he was a drunk who had been beating my mom, and she had called the police on him. I spent most of my time at my grandfather's house after he was imprisoned, and he basically raised me until I was eleven. Then he died," I felt my throat go tight at the words, and I suddenly felt a tentative hand wrapping around mine. I glanced up into warm, brown sympathetic eyes. Her smile was small, but surprisingly comforting. I accepted the hand hold before continuing,

"Anyway, so I had to go back to live with my mom. She was constantly drinking, and I think taking heavy drugs. I would have to take care of her all the time. I would get home from school to see her on the couch, drinking herself to sleep in front of the television and laughing nonstop. When I turned fourteen, however, someone called to report her, I never found out who. She was taken away and placed in rehab, and has been there since. I lived in Chavez, and so I stayed in a foster home. I went back to Chavez all the time, even though I had moved out of there, and got in trouble all the time, despite my a friend's best efforts." I was babbling, and I knew it. I wasn't sure why I was about to start describing Jay but I was. And I couldn't stop myself. "He's in his thirties, and used to be like me, always in trouble. He's Samoan and has a bunch of... tatt--"

"Big Jay?!" Melissa interrupted me, alarmed. My head snapped up, and I stared at her, shocked that she would even know his name. Melissa's expression was surprised at well, probably for the same reason mine was.

"What? You know him?!" We said together. Melissa cocked her head and stared at me, her eyes wide with disbelief.

"Yes, I know him," Melissa said, "we've been friends for a while now. I'm in Chavez often enough. He and I practice fighting from time to time." She shrugged, "I also help out at his 'church.' I think I've seen you there before."

"I've never seen you there." I countered, shaking my head, "and I'm at Big Jay's church almost every day!!"

"I'm the girl with the _Lake Placid _sweater." Melissa explained, "the hood is always up and the sweater is dark blue with _Lake Placid _printed on the front in white and pink." Her eyes were hopeful, willing me to remember her. My mind sifted through memories quickly, trying to find her. Bingo.

"That was _you?!_" I demanded disbelievingly, thinking of the mysterious cloaked girl that occupied the minds of most of the teenaged males in Chavez. It was part of the reason that Big Jay's church was so popular. Melissa nodded and opened her mouth, but the ring of her cell-phone stopped her. She glanced quickly at the screen before looking back up at me, her expression resigned.

"It's my mom." She informed me sadly.

"Are you going to answer it?" I asked, already knowing the answer. She shook her head solemnly. I sighed, my heart twisting in pain at her unhappiness, "we should get going then?" I asked her. Melissa nodded again tiredly and rose, gathering her finished sundae to throw in the trash can. I mimicked her, and then followed her out the door, wondering what on earth was going to happen now.

--

**Holy FRACK!! Ok, people, I am at my cottage right now, and this has to be my longest chapter EVER!! It's 4784 words, and it's the longest chapter I've ever written was barely over 2000. Maybe it's the air... or scenery up here! Hm... anyway, I've decided to finish this fic before I update anymore of my other stories (sorry!). I may work on them, but this story seems to be everyone's favourite out of all of my other fics. I plan to have twelve chapters, and hopefully it won't take me that long. Anyway, please review!!**

**Song Of The Sparrow**

**P.S.: When you guys review, will you please tell me you favourite out of all my stories please? I don't know how to make a poll on my profile page, so just tell me in your review. The most voted for I will work on (when I'm not working on OWA). And tell me which OWA you like better, this one, or the one I did first. I honestly like this one better due to the fact that it's more interesting. Please give me those 3 opinions, on this chapter, your favourite out of all my stories, and which OWA you like best. Thanks!**


	6. Chapter VI

**Opposites Will Attract**

**Chapter 6**

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**Title: **Opposites Will Attract  
**Chapter: **6/12  
**Word Count: **3,044  
**Pairing: **Melissa and Jackson  
**Author: **Song Of The Sparrow  
**Fandom: **Flight 29 Down  
**Disclaimer: **If I owned it, Taylor would have stayed a bitch, Melissa would have been stronger, and Jackson would have liked Melissa from the very beginning.  
**Summary: **Melissa is surprised with a new addition to the family one morning. He's rude, and he likes to taunt her. But nevertheless, she feels something other than hate towards him.

**--**

**abovetherim: **_Thanks!! I'm glad you're happy. But could you answer my poll that I listed at the bottom of the last chapter._

**Carshizzle Mathmel: **_We'll see, I'm actually trying that at the moment, the title is, 'Unexpected Attraction,' but I probably won't publish it until OWA is finished, and my other F29D fics._

**Joucelin: **_I thought so too!! I can't wait until the final F29D book comes out, but it is taking a _**_really _**_long time to come out!! Same with abovetherim, please respond to my poll._

**watched 2 much tv: **_Thanks!! Please respond to my poll._

**Define-Irony: **_Well, I disagree. I found it _**_excruciatingly _**_painful to much Melissa's pathetic nature, but that's just two opinions. I always love your reviews, there is always something in there to make me think. I know that not all Asian parents are that strict, _**_of course_**_ I know that, but the point of this story is to explore a part of Melissa, and since she never gave the reason towards _**_why _**_she was so nervous in the show, I'm exploring different ways. She isn't that nervous in the story, but her father gives you an idea towards her nature. It may be that she's just naturally nervous, but again, I'm exploring the different options. But may I ask you a favour? Before you go ahead and assume that you know what people are thinking, please listen to both sides of the story. If you hadn't expressed your opinion that I was being presumptuous, I wouldn't have had to explain all this. I'm sorry if I seem rude, but you never gave me a chance to explain myself before assuming I was being presumptuous._

**lovingo0Kawaii0oGirl: **_Oooh... a new reviewer, lovely. I'm glad you like the story so far._

**girlyworld95: **_Thanks!! Please respond to my poll._

**soccerchick8: **_Okay, thanks!!_

**Serendipity545: **_OMG!! Thank goodness you're back, I knew you were on vacation but as a joke I was going to put an MIA on this chapter. LOL!! Glad you liked the chapter, it was my favourite too._

**--**

**Melissa POV**

As I lay on my bedspread, hugging my stuffed dog, Scamp. I had closed my almond-shaped eyes and let my mind wander. The double bed had always been a nice place to think. I would lie my head on the pillows and lay there for hours, my mind just... drifting. I tried to do this ritual at least once a day, I considered it a more comfortable version of meditating. Usually my thoughts were the most random thing, from a disliked TV show that was playing tonight, to a desire to know what and when my next meal would be. Today however, they were focused on more serious things.

I hadn't said anything to my mother since I had caught her with... _Jose. _She had certainly tried in the past few day, but I had avoided all conversation with her. My father had noticed, and had scolded me on it, but I truly didn't care. All I cared about was avoiding my mother. Of course I knew I was going to have to _eventually_ talk to her, and I knew that I was being a little immature, avoiding her like this; but at the moment, being immature didn't bother me too much. And I didn't know how long I was going to avoid her, but I knew I would be doing it for a while yet. I had seen Jackson a couple of times over the past few days giving her a look, subtly warning her that now was not a good time. She hadn't listened.

_Jackson. _Ever since we had gone to _Dairy Queen _together, and spilled our unfortunate childhoods to each other, we had been getting along great. It was funny, how explaining how screwed up our parents are over ice-cream apparently brought two people together. I don't mean like, _together, _or anything, I mean like, we've become much closer since that day. As friends. No more fighting. Well, that's not exactly true. We did argue, just over our opinions on books or songs... that kind of thing. We had actually been talking to each other at school, instead of him just following me in the shadows. At home, we spent hours in my room or his... just... talking.

He was the absolute best listener I had ever met. He said the same about me. We traded stories about our childhoods, some happy, some upsetting, or some just downright embarrassing. It had only been a few days since we had started becoming closer, yet I already felt like I had known him for my entire life. I opened up to him more than I had ever to another person. I could tell it was the same for him because at first he refused to look at me when he told me something personal, and his cheeks turned a fierce red. But now, he seemed to be comfortable sharing anything with me. And I felt the same.

When I had asked him about past romantic interests (just to see if his were as pathetic as mine) Jackson had told me about a girl he had dated (with much persuasion), named Annika Littlemore, he told me that he had dated her for a few months before discovering that she was pregnant. The only problem with that, was that Jackson was a virgin (which I was oddly pleased about), so she must have been cheating on him. And apparently she had the nerve to ask him to take the place as the father. He had turned her down of course.

Jackson had even showed me his guitar that he had hidden in his closet. He was _really _good. The songs he played me were all written by him. One of them, sounded like it was based on me. But I was too nervous to ask. He seemed carefree when he was playing, his eyes turned soft and his mouth turned upwards... something that didn't happen very often with him. The hardest thing for me was the fact that those caring eyes were set on me, and they would roam all over me, mostly lingering on my face. Strangely enough, although his looks were embarrassing for me, I liked them. I liked them... a lot. They weren't looks I had received before.

A chuckle interrupted my thoughts. Cracking them open, I looked to find Jackson standing above me, his eyes dancing in amusement, while one of his hands covered his mouth, which was barely keeping back a full blown laugh. I sat up fully, opening my eyes and blinking a few times, glancing blearily at my clock. _5:30 p.m., _it stated. I looked back at Jackson, who was now staring at Scamp. For security reasons, I hugged him closer to me. Blushing furiously, I tried to hide Scamp from Jackson's amused eyes.

"What?" I demanded, stuffing him beneath my pillows. "How did you get in here without me noticing?" I blushed furiously at his amused expression. He smiled down at me, getting closer to my face.

"Well, you weren't being very observant, I'm guessing you were to busy _cuddling _with you stuffed dog to notice anything," his voice was only gently teasing, but I still looked away, trying to hide my blush. Jackson seemed to be finished torturing me, because he changed the subject, which I was not complaining about. "You're mom just called," he said hesitantly, knowing that he had to be careful, "apparently there's some event we have to go to this evening? Some charity event?" My head snapped up, dread flooding through me.

"Shit!" I exclaimed, surprising Jackson. He probably didn't expect such foul language leaving my mouth. But that didn't matter right now. What _did _matter was the fact that I was going to be trapped at some Newpsie event for the next few hours in a... a... _dress!! _My hatred of dresses could probably be categorized under _'Unhealthy' _due to the fact that I avoided them like they were the Black Plague. My mother had always said that the reason she had wanted a little girl is so she could dress her up in pretty things with lace and cuff, but she had been greatly disappointed. I shudder at the thought of those types of clothing. But it looked like I wouldn't be able to escape a dress this time.

"Wait a minute." Jackson stated, his face paling, "do we have to go? More importantly, do _I _have to go?" He started to pace, "I can't go! This thing will be filled with... with...--"

"A bunch of spoiled, rich snobs that will only talk about what charity they've donated money to. Or, the newest, juiciest bits of gossip. Mainly you, of course." He looked at me funny. I shrugged, "what do you expect? You're the – sort of – brand new foster child of Lynne and Sebastian Wu. They're going to spend the _entire time_ whispering and pointing at you." A thought occurred to me, "oh! Avoid the Newpsie women. Some of them may be willing to sleep with you. Bad thing. _Avoid them at ALL costs!!_ Understood?" Jackson looked swayed by this apparent information, but still nodded his understanding.

"Yeah. Okay, got it." He said.

"Good. Now, when do we have to start getting ready?" I asked _him, _but for some reason, someone _else _answered.

"Right now." The soft voice of my floozy mother stated from my doorway. Jackson and I turned our heads to look at her. Jackson moved to stand in front of me slightly, as if to protect me from her and what she had done to my father. I sat up as fast as a lightening bolt and locked my eyes with my cheating bitch of a mother. We stared at each other for a moment, my eyes betraying the anger and disapproval of her actions. I stared at her until she looked away from me, her face beet-red with embarrassment. Satisfied, I uttered the first words I had spoken to her since I had discovered how she spent her time when she wasn't with me or my dad.

"Fine. We'll be ready soon." My voice was cold and curt. Usually, my mother would scold me endlessly for using such a tone with her, but me catching her and my anger seemed to have extinguished the fire within her. And then she slowly turned heel and left, but not before gesturing to Jackson to follow her, which he did, and giving me her classic, Guilty Look. She gave me that look whenever I had been angry with her in the past, and it always had made me feel bad enough to right the wrongs between us. Even to apologize when it wasn't my fault. But not this time. _Definitely _not this time.

I raised myself from the comfortable mattress and I headed for the window. The glass shows me the world that I live in. It shows me all the mansions surrounding my own, although my house probably isn't big enough to be dubbed a _mansion. _I see rich people getting ready for something, this charity event no doubt. I see limos pulling away from driveways, carrying their owners or renters to wherever they desire, though most likely it will be somewhere with lots if people to stare at them. I wish I was in Chavez, where although some people are dangerous, some people are hurt, violated, and looked down on daily, they are all still _real, _and they don't pretend to be something they aren't. Which is more than I can say for this godforsaken place.

My mother calls, and I knew that I needed to get ready. I strode quickly from my room and into a bathroom, turning on the shower head. I quickly stripped and entered the shower, allowing the hot water to pour all over me, and wash away my stress in preparation for tonight's ghastly events.

--

**Jackson POV**

_This is insane, _I thought to myself as I stared at my reflection. Mrs. Wu had forced me into a tuxedo (not literally), and now I looked like I was going to a funeral. I couldn't however, put on this _fucking tie!! _I had never reason to wear these things. And I wish that this would be the last time but I had the feeling that it wouldn't be that easy. Especially if I stayed in this neighbourhood, where I'm betting these kind of things happen often enough. I had just been spared in the past couple of months I had been here.

A soft chuckle sounded from my doorway. I turned to look, and was greeted with a sight to remember. Melissa. She had really dressed up for the occasion. A spaghetti-strap, wine-coloured dress covered her, stopping just before her knees. Unlike most girls her age, she wore flats instead of those heels with ridiculous heights. The dress was not skin-tight, but definitely not loose either. It flattered her generous curves greatly. Her hair was not tied up, but let down and allowed to frame her face, which, was not covered in cover-up for once. The barest hints of make-up had been applied, but her natural beauty shone through. A simple necklace hung around her neck and simple bracelets clung to her wrists.Finally, sapphire drops twinkled by her ears. _Breathtakingly beautiful would be one way to describe her... _I thought, looking her up and down before gracing her with a look of great approval.

"You look beautiful." The words slipped out before I could stop myself and they made their way to Melissa's ears quickly. She blushed furiously and played with one of her earrings, avoiding my look for a moment. She then looked back up at me, a cheeky grin playing at her lips and making her eyes light up.

"You don't look to bad yourself. Having trouble with that tie?" She asked me teasingly, making me scowl. She laughed lightly and traveled over to the mirror, her long tapered fingers prying the tie from my white-knuckled grip and proceeded to wrap it around my neck herself. As she gently brushed my neck, shivers shot through my body, the exact same shivers that had racked my body when I had found her in the alley a few days ago and held her.

"So... not so much experience with tying ties?" Melissa asked me, her tone still slightly cheeky. I glared down at her again, provoking yet another chuckle out of her.

"Not really events where tuxedos and ties are needed in Chavez, you know that." I stated matter -o-factly. She smiled as she tightened the tie. She backed up – finished – and admired her handy work. I turned back to the mirror to do the same. But I was also examining my reflection, seeing someone that I never though I would be, someone more successful, someone luckier.

Her hands rested on my shoulders and her chin rested just against the crook of my neck. Her expression was a mixture of thoughtfulness, wonder, and sadness. "You'd never guess that you'd be here today... did you?" Her whisper softly caressed the smallest strands of hair near the base of my neck, making and electric shock course through me. Not wanting to startle her, I drew away slowly, turning to rest my own larger hands on her slender, _bare _shoulders, my face not to far from her own.

"Not really." I admitted, trying with difficulty to smile. And failing. She smiled slightly and gently ran her thumb on the top of my cheekbone, surprising me... and I think herself as well. Her slightly glossed lips were opened in shock, staring at me with a questioning and confusing look in her beautiful brown eyes. Before you knew it we were leaning closer and closer to one another, the gap between our lips getting smaller. My lips were an inch from her own, and I could feel her breath on my skin. Closer... closer...

"Melissa!! Cody!! We have to go!! _Now!!" _Mrs. Wu yelled. Melissa and I quickly lengthened the space between us, I tearing my hands and lips away from her, Melissa stepping away from me. I could feel my face flushing deeply, from desire or embarrassment I wasn't sure which. Her own face was flushed, and her pupils dilated, and a small voice at the back of my head asked me if I looked as red as she did.

"Come on," Melissa grinned, looking at me shyly, her face still tomato red, "time for your first ride in a limo." She then quickly left the room, letting me know that although she had acted like our moment was nothing, she was embarrassed and confused about it. But that moment – even though it had only happened moments before – had made me realize something very important, and something very obvious. Something that had been there from the first moment I had laid eyes on her.

I was in love with Melissa Wu.

Shit.

--

**Okay, NOT the most exciting chapter I've ever written, and I was going to have the entire event in this chapter, but I wanted to have a quicker update (it would have been up quicker but my computer was being bitchy). The next chapter (which I hope to have up soon) will contain this charity event, so stay tuned, faithful readers, and please review.**

**Song Of Sorrow**


	7. Chapter VII

**Opposites Will Attract**

**Chapter 7**

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**Title: **Opposites Will Attract  
**Chapter: **7/12  
**Word Count: **3451  
**Pairing: **Melissa and Jackson  
**Author: **Elven In Spirit  
**Fandom: **Flight 29 Down  
**Disclaimer: **If I owned it, Taylor would have stayed a bitch, Melissa would have been stronger, and Jackson would have liked Melissa from the very beginning.  
**Summary: **Melissa is surprised one morning with a new addition to the family. He's rude, and he likes to taunt her. But nevertheless, she feels something other than hate towards him.

--

**girlyworld95: **_Thanks!!_

**shaybay55: **_Thanks!! I'm glad you enjoy my stories so much._

**Joucelin: **_I'll try. Thanks!!_

**Define-Irony: **_It's okay. I know that you didn't mean to be rude. Grr... I'm awful with the ending punctuation at the end of someone speaking, I KNOW!! It sucks and I try so hard to get it right. But it really confuses me. I'm glad you liked the chapter!!_

**abovetherim: **_Thanks!!_

**flight29lover:**_ Thanks!!_

**Serendipity545: **_(chuckle) Thanks, the ending just came to me, and it made sense, considering that Jackson – being Melissa's parents' foster-child – isn't really _**_allowed _**_to fall for Melissa, even if that rule hasn't been spoken aloud. As for my computer, it added all these characters and I thought they had deleted my chapter, and it took me a couple of days to realize that all I needed to do was delete said characters. I glad you liked the chapter, you'll have to read on to find out if the gang is in the chapter._

**soccerchick8: **_Thanks!! I hope you can update soon!!_

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**IsisIsabella: **_A new reviewer!! Thanks, glad you like the story. I promise you that Mel/Jackson _**_will _**_kiss soon, I just haven't decided when yet._

**A/N: Hey guys, as you can see, I changed my Pen Name again. Sorry!! I'll try not to do it again for awhile, I just get bored easily. Anyhoo, this chapter will be in mostly Eric's POV because we need to know how he's feeling. Everyone _please _stop bugging me about the kiss, it _will _happen, I promise. Plus, I want things to heat up a bit more, so it won't be this chapter. Oh, one more thing: For any of you _Twilight _fans, I just published a story called _False Protection. _It would mean a lot to me if you guys would check it out on my Profile page. Oh, and another one more thing, I recommend this new story on the F29D page, it's called _29 Down, _and a very interesting story. Not many people have reviewed, so I'm guessing that you've either just NOT reviewed or you haven't read it. But check both these stories out, who knows, you may like them.**

* * *

**Eric POV**

I was standing at the stupid food table, wearing an uncomfortable tuxedo, sipping a glass of vodka. Although if anyone asked, it was water. The stupid suit was itchy, since it was new. I had always hated putting these things on. They didn't breathe very well, they were uncomfortable, and they looked dorky. But my suit, instead of black, was light blue, which was event dorkier. I had to fight extremely hard not to squirm in the suit, because then I would look strange.

Just then my eye caught the beautiful ocean-deep blue eyes of none other then the shallow Taylor Hagan. She batted her eyelashes a few times at me before turning back to her boyfriend, Nathan McHugh. I hated him. How could _he _of all people, catch the hottest fish in the Hartwell school of fish?! It was insane, he was _not _the kind of guy she went for. It was probably just because he was Class President. It would increase her popularity (if that were possible) and put her in Daddy's good graces. But she wouldn't dump him! And I think he knew that he wasn't the guy she was seeing. If he did he didn't seem to care.

A little ways from them was Daley Marin. Another one I hated. She was staring jealously at Nathan and Taylor, everyone but Nathan _knew _that she liked him. And when I say _we_, I mean the _entire _school... except for Nathan. I think he liked her too, he was just too stubborn to admit it as they had been arch-rivals since like, preschool. Next to her, trying desperately to get her attention, was her step-brother... Lex, I think. He was a little know-it-all 10-year-old who corrected _everyone. _It was _annoying. _

I sighed. _This _was my life. Now I honestly wouldn't have come if it wasn't for my mom, who wouldn't stop nagging me. I usually loved these kind of things, the food was good, and the girls were _hot, _and I could usually manage to coax one to two girls to join me in my bed for the night. I once even managed three!! Count it!! Of course, I was expert at making a girl moan. But it was getting harder and harder to enjoy those nights of pleasure. It was actually getting a little boring. Which I would never of thought possible. I mean, it was _sex!! _Who didn't love sex? Maybe it was because the one person I wanted sex from at the moment refused to let me.

_Her._

She was more beautiful, in my opinion (although I'd never admit it) than anyone I had ever met. She was strange as well. She wore heavy make-up and covering clothes, and she seemed afraid of her father. Who's afraid of their dads? They do nothing but support you, I guess she was just a spoiled brat. As for the make-up, zits no doubt. And the clothes? Well at first I thought it was torture, I thought she was trying to seduce by being a tease. I thought she was playing hard to get when she refused to have sex with me. And she was a virgin. Virgins were the best, because no matter what happened, they would always remember you, because you were their first.

But she refused to get any farther that kissing. When I had lost my temper on her that fateful day, she totally lost it. Her eyes became shielded with fear, and she slid down to the floor, leaning against the floor. And if it wasn't for Jackson, that son of a bitch, I may have actually have gotten sex from Mel. She wasn't to good at dealing with pressure. But that stupid foster-kid had barged in on our private conversation, threatened me, his fists clenched. And with his reputation as a _'_Bad Boy,' I didn't want to chance getting my ass kicked. So I backed down, and left with my tail between my legs. Just before I had reached the staircase, I had vaguely heard his soothing voice speaking to Melissa, whose tone was shaky.

Speaking of those two... there they were. Climbing out of a limo. Jackson looked like one of us, instead of some poor kid from the Chavez. Melissa... oh, Melissa... I had never seen her this way. Her dress hugged her figure flatteringly, while her face was without cover-up for once. I may have been farther from her, but it was easy to tell. And her face was lit up with a smile I had never seen before. And it was directed towards _him. _And he wasn't even her boyfriend!! _I _should be the one to make her smile like that!! But no, it was some kid from Chavez who acted rude and broody, why would Melissa like being around him? She was a beautiful, sunny girl, why would she hang with someone completely opposite to her?

I suspected that there was more going on with those two than just friendship. They had such obvious chemistry with each other. Many at school were commenting on it, mostly to me. It made my blood boil. And there was the way that Melissa just lit up when she was with him. I had started watching them at school... and listening to them. I wouldn't call it _spying, _per se, just... careful observation? And I could tell easily that Jackson had the hots for _my _girl. It was the way he gazed at her, almost as if he was examining a beautiful specimen. I was anxious to know Melissa's true feelings, however.

I stormed over there, towards the two of them. I was sick of their communication, it was too close for comfort. They didn't notice my loud, angry footsteps, but everyone else did. They stopped to stare at me as I continued my journey, my brow furrowing deeper and deeper with every step closer I took. I brushed past Taylor, provoking some swearing from the, both. Taylor looked offended, probably because someone like _me, _didn't take notice of someone like _her. _But I didn't notice them, my eyes were fixed solely on the two figures sipping on _Sprite, _huddled close and speaking in whispers.

"Melissa. Jackson." My tone was clipped and cold, my hands settling on my hips as I glared at the both of them. Their smiles faded when they saw me. Melissa's somber expression made my heart ache. But only just a little. "Melissa," I started again, "why didn't you tell me you had arrived? This is a _couple _event, you're supposed to spend the evening with _me, _not... _him._" Jackson glared fiercely at me when I gestured vaguely at me. His grip on his glass tightened.

"Since when do you tell her what to do?" He asked me coldly. Melissa looked at him, surprised. I stepped in front of him, our noses not even an inch away from each other.

"Since when do you question what I do, _Chavez?" _I asked him mockingly. His teeth gritted, and I saw a flash of danger cross his eyes. I was concentrating all my energy on not breaking this staring contest. I didn't think I could honestly take this guy in a fight... heck I doubt I could even last a minute. But I had a feeling that that was where this was going. And if it did... I would be in some deep shit.

"That's enough!" A voice snapped. I broke out of this trance and stepped away from Jackson. Melissa entered the space between the two of us, placed a hand on each of our chests, and pushed. Well, she had no luck with Jackson but she made me take a couple steps back. I noticed that Melissa then stood next to Jackson, instead of standing with me... you know... _her boyfriend_. It made it seemed like she was siding with him. Was she? She was scowling at me, which couldn't be a good sign.

"Eric." Her voice was cold. _Bad sign, bad sign!! _I thought frantically. But wasn't she supposed to take my side? I mean, once again, I _am _her boyfriend. "Will you please go away?" Her question didn't sound like one, it sounded like a command.

"Why?" I demanded, "_I'm _your boyfriend!!" I pointed out again, although this time aloud. Melissa looked at me funny,

"So?"

"So!? _SO!?" _I was flabbergasted. I stepped threateningly towards her, but Jackson wrapped an arm around her instinctively, and pulled her in close. The image of them both cuddled against each other entered my line of vision. And then Melissa did something that pushed me over the edge. She. _Blushed._ I was shaking with anger, and I stepped even closer to Melissa, despite Jackson's warning look. "You're _my _girlfriend, _Melissa! _Yet you're spending more time with this son of a _drunken _bitch." I was yelling now, and everyone was looking at us. But I didn't care. I saw Jackson fist jerk towards when I said 'drunken bitch.' I had heard the rumours. But Melissa grabbed his hand and held it firmly. My face contorted red with anger.

"Eric, you're embarrassing yourself and me," Melissa hissed at me, her face getting redder. I stared at her, did she really think I cared at this moment?!

"Dude. Back off, _now." _Jackson said to me tightly. That was it. I had had enough. I lunged for Jackson, who pushed Melissa away from him just in time. I vaguely heard Melissa screaming in the background and tugging at my arm. I shook her off before blocking out her voice and the other screaming voices and concentrated on hitting that bastard as hard as I could, who was strangely, _not _fighting back.

* * *

**Melissa POV**

"NO!! ERIC!!" I grabbed his arm, trying to pull him off of Jackson. I was panicking,everyone was screaming, if Jackson, fought back, he would be in _major _trouble. Eric roughly shook me off, knocking me to the ground, before letting his fists fall again and again on Jackson's face, who... wasn't moving. He was laying perfectly still while Eric pummeled him. He wasn't struggling, or trying to stop him, he was just... lying there, closing his eyes whenever Eric hit him.

I jumped to my feet, preparing to jump into the fight again. But someone grabbed me and wrapped one arm around my waist, while the other around my arms. Nathan. He shook his head once firmly, but I didn't stop struggling. Eric's father and mine stepped up to separate them. Mr. McGorrill grabbed Eric and pulled him off of Jackson roughly while my father helped Jackson up. I gasped, Jackson lip was split, and his face was covered in red splotches. My father muttered a few words to him and then shook his hand. Jackson nodded his head wearily.

Nathan finally let go of me and I immediately ran to Jackson and – on impulse – jumped into his arms. I hugged as hard as I could, pulling back when I heard him groan with pain. My hands gently ran over his various bruises, wincing when I felt how bad the swelling was and when he let out a quiet moan in pain. Vaguely I heard Eric trying to lunge at Jackson again, but was held back. I then realized that we were still standing in a half-embrace. His arms were around my waist while my hands caressed his face. I blushed again and stepped out of it.

"Are you okay?" I asked, before frowning. _Of course he's not okay!! He just got his ass kicked in front of three __hundred people!! _I mentally scolded myself.

"I'm fine," he chuckled, apparently guessing my thoughts. His quiet laughter sent shivers down my back, shocking me. I blushed even a deeper red – if that was possible – and took another step back from him. I was avoiding his gaze, which was set intensely on me, making me nervous.

Grabbing his hand and leading him out of the crowd that surrounded us, I stopped suddenly in front of Eric. Jackson walked into me, not expecting me to stop. I winced slightly when he stepped on my heels, but he hastily stepped back with a muttered apology. I squared my shoulders and looked at Eric – who was still being held back by his father – his gaze boring into my eyes.

"I'm assuming you've already guessed what I'm about to do?" I asked him, when he shook his head, I rolled my eyes at his stupidity. "We're done." And with that final note, I pushed passed the rest of the crowd, leading Jackson into the mansion in front of us to look for some ice.

* * *

**Jackson POV**

"Ouch," Melissa sympathized. We were sitting in the spacious kitchen, me sitting on the marbled counter top, her standing in front of me, dabbing my face with a wet washcloth, cleaning my many wounds. I could tell she was proud of me for not fighting back, although she hadn't voiced it aloud. I'm not sure how I was even able to hold back, as I usually instinctively fight back when someone jumps on me. But I had this picture of a happy Melissa in my mind, and I knew that I would probably be taken away from her if I had fought back. And now that I had come to terms with my feelings for her, I would do anything to keep her happy. Strange, I know. I had never thought I would care this much about keeping a girl happy. But there you go. That's what love does to you my friends.

I couldn't stop staring at her. She had just ended her relationship with Eric – something that I had wanted for a while now – yet I couldn't help but feel a teensy bit guilty. She had broke up with him because of me, probably for other reasons as well but I had a suspicion that I had a big part in her decision. But also, she had done it – in a way – _for _me. And no one had ever done something this big for me. Ending a relationship is a _big _decision. But she had done it so quickly, now I only had to worry about Eric coming after me again.

I bit my lip, contemplating what to say. Melissa seemed to guess that I was feeling guilty, for she looked up at me and chuckled, sending warm shivers down my back. Her laugh was melodic, a musical sound that was beautiful to hear.

"Jackson, I was already going to break up with him. Him attacking you just... gave me the push I needed." She smiled up at me, making my heart ache. "Don't feel guilty... I'm – I'm _proud _of you for not fighting back. If you had... you probably would've been taken away from m – us. You could've been taken away from _us." _She blushed and ducked her head.

I smiled, hooking my finger under her chin and bringing it upward. I had to tell her how I felt about her. Eric was gone, now was my perfect chance, "Melissa, I-"

"Melissa?! Cody?!" Mr. Wu burst into the kitchen. I quickly let her chin go and Melissa handed me the washcloth. It occurred to me that she could've let me do it herself. Could that mean...? No, no, she was just concerned about me.

"Yeah Dad?"

"Have you seen your mother?" He asked her. I noticed that Melissa wasn't as scared around her father anymore I wondered if it was because of me...? Nah.

"No Dad I hav--"

A pleasure filled moan cut her off. All three of us looked at the kitchen cupboard strangely, where the moans seemed to be coming from. Mr. Wu stepped towards it, grasping the handle and yanking the door open. Guess what we saw. If you guessed Mrs. Wu... then you'd be correct.

Her top was off, and her bra was being unlaced by the man molded to her figure. Mr. McGorrill, _Eric's Father. _There limbs were all tangled together, their lips swollen. It looked like Mrs. Wu had been attempting to remove his sweater as it was all rumpled. Their eyes were wild with lust, their hair tangled and their breath haggard. Melissa and I turned our gazes to her father, just to see his reaction. Mr. Wu's face was hardening at the sight. Disgust curled his lips and hate overtook his eyes. I swore I saw tears glimmering in his eyes for a moment. Then he turned heel and was gone.

Melissa walked over to the closet and shut it, but not before muttering something that sounded surprisingly like 'bitch.' Then she walked over to me, accepted my hug, and started to cry.

* * *

**A/N: Okay then, a few important elements in that chapter. I know you guys wanted a kiss, but,I warned you at the beginning of the chapter that there wouldn't be one. Eric was acting like a man-whore, which is a little OOC for him, but I needed it to be that way. If you see any mistakes, I'm sorry. I checked for them but it's late, and I'm exhausted. I will be away for like, three weeks so it will be awhile until I update. Sorry!! Please review!! **


	8. Chapter VIII

**Opposites Will Attract**

**Chapter 8**

**Title: **Opposites Will Attract  
**Chapters: **8  
**Word Count: **3529  
**Pairing: **Melissa/Jackson  
**Author: **ICan'tDecideWhatMyPenNameIs  
**Fandom: **Flight 29 Down  
**Disclaimer: **If I owned it, Taylor would've stayed a bitch, Melissa would have been stronger, and Jackson would have liked Melissa from the very beginning.  
**Summary: **Melissa is surprised one morning with a new addition to the family. He's rude, and he likes to taunt her, but nevertheless, she feels something other than hate towards him.

* * *

**diavoloduchessa: **_Thank for being so patient!!_

**lovingo0Kawaii0oGirl: **_I know! Poor Mr. Wu? That's the first time I've heard that, most of my reviewers say he deserves it. I will continue, of course._

**shaybay55: **_I tried to make him as an ass. If Jackson had fought back he would've gotten in _**_trouble. _**_Do you read my Author's Notes?? It explained my thoughts about the kiss. There _**_might _**_be more scenes with Nathan/Mel, I haven't decided yet. I need Mrs. Wu to be slutty. She's like Melissa, she needs love, and Mr. Wu doesn't give her enough of that._

**girlyworld95: **_Thanks!!_

**Serendipity545: **_I have to admit something: I don't even _**_think _**_about updating until I get your reviews. No offense to my other reviewers, you've just been more involved with the story than they have. You said you would check out FP, what did you think? I didn't get a review from you so...? I never got a response either. I am sure I messaged you, questioning your review but you never answered. I have one question: _**_Why? _**_I'm not angry, just a little discouraged. I would _**_love _**_an explanation._

**Joucelin: **_Thanks!!_

**candyland798: **_Thanks!!_

**a7xwriter888: **_Thanks!!_

**abovetherim: **_Thanks!! You'll find out._

**amber n: **_I'm unbelievably excited that you're back, thanks for the review. _

**Kacee: **_...you are an AWESOME reviewer, but I have one question: Why did you review the same chapter twice? You did both anonymously and signed._

* * *

**A/N: Okay guys, I have to ask you all a favour: READ MY AUTHOR'S NOTES!! From the reviews I get, I get proof that you either ignore them, or don't read them. I write them for a reason. If you didn't read the last one, PLEASE DO SO NOW!! And for the future, PLEASE READ THEM!! Sorry that I'm so cranky, I'm pissed _because _I have taken WAY to long to post this, plus my dog (who was abused as a puppy and found in a dumpster when he was 5 weeks old), bit a jogger today, because he _hates _strange men. Now the guy is going to the doctor and calling the Health Authorities and such, because he is the type of guy that makes a fuss. If you feel like mentioning this in your review, and you comment how he is in the right, I. Will. Punish. You. Don't think for a moment that I _don't _know all of this, but telling me that when I'm scared stiff that they're going to take my dog away from me would be a _bad _move.**

**Whatever. Just read the damn chapter.**

**Yes I deleted _'Hotel Tango,' _and _'My Fear Of Commitment,' _I wasn't going anywhere with the stories, and to be frank, I hated them. I've grown so much as a author and just reading them was painful, but who knows I may redo them (definitely FOC).**

**Melissa POV**

"I need to get the hell out of here."

I couldn't stand the cold, dead silence of my house. I was starting to find it difficult to call this accursed place _home. _The rooms seemed so empty... filled with nothing... They were missing the warmth that I thought there used to be. The pictures on the walls that marked happy memories now appeared false. Untrue. A lie. When I looked at them closely, my smile was sometimes forced. My father's smile was _always _fake. My mother didn't seem to be to aware of her surroundings. The pictures taken at the zoo... school events... and in our backyard... seemed worthless. I felt so alone here. I knew that this place had brought me pain... and it wouldn't bring me anything else. And when I thought about it, I realized this wasn't a recent thing. I had never, and would never, be at home with my two parents living with me. It was a tough and sad realization, but a realization nevertheless.

My dad still hadn't come home. After he had caught Mr. McGorrill and my mom together... he had taken off. I hadn't seen him since that incident, three days ago. He was upset, which confused me. He had never given evidence of truly loving my mother. What was even more confusing was my mother's reaction. She hadn't gone to work since the Charity Event, and she hadn't even left her room. Jackson and I brought her food and water occasionally, but other than that she stared straight at the television, watching _'Desperate Housewives,' _a show I _knew _she hated. I had been hearing her cry late at night, and her blotchy cheeks had multiple tear stains on them, giving her away. The million dollar question was: _why? _How could she be so upset when it had been _her _that was cheating. Why would she react this way?

That question was making my head hurt. It had been for days.

I had been not been skipping school. I hadn't hid in my room, like my mom was. I was attending school but hiding my face with a hoodie and avoiding any type of conversation with anyone. Not much better, I know. But I couldn't help it. Everyone was confused, thinking it had to do with the fight between Jackson and Eric. Some thought it was because Eric and I had broken up, and people were either chastising me for doing it or supporting my decision. But back to home life. If my mom knew that I was hurting from what had happened, she either didn't show it or didn't care. But either way she wasn't acting like a proper mother... and she hadn't for a long time now.

I hadn't really spoken to Jackson. I wasn't _mad _per say, just nervous. The way our friendship had been progressing was getting dangerous. We had almost kissed _three _times now, which was not normal, and that was definitely not a good thing. We were _foster-_siblings, a relationship was totally out of the questions. Plus we lived together, and there is no way in hell I would live with my... boyfriend when I was seventeen. I'm not stupid or oblivious, I've caught the glances he constantly sends me. The ones that speak of his... well I don't really know what, but the point is that it wasn't looks of friendship.

I wasn't strong enough to stand up and tell him this myself, so basically we were in this never ending circle of awkward moments.

Which leads to the point of this explanation.

I was standing next to Jackson's bed, my fists clenched. He hadn't noticed me entering his room, so one on me. His blue eyes were wide with surprise when I had spoken. He had been reading, which was probably why he hadn't noticed me coming in. He did look faintly annoyed because I had disturbed his reading time. I didn't care, and repeated my sentence.

He nodded, "I heard you the first time." His voice held traces of a rude nature, but I ignored it. I stood there nervously, twisting my hands behind my back where he couldn't see them. He continued to observe me silently, with the same damn unreadable expression he got when he was thinking hard. It was an intense gaze that was guaranteed to penetrate the barriers of your mind. And dammit he was using it on me again. I was starting to fidget.

He finally nodded again, "okay, where?" This time it was my turn to stare aimlessly at him. He chuckled, "How 'bout Chavez." Again, more staring from me. He had never offered to do that with me, we actually didn't really speak of Chavez. It was actually a good idea, if only I could get my mouth to work.

"Okay." There we go.

* * *

_45 minutes later..._

We had arrived. The drive there had been in total silence, a very awkward silence. I'm not sure why. Maybe it was because Jackson saw that my life was falling apart and he wasn't sure of what to say, on fear of making it worse. Or maybe it was because the awkward, _'almosts' _moments that we kept having was making our friendship uncomfortable. Whatever the reason, it was something that would blow over. At least I hoped.

We stood at the entranceway to a popular teen bar. Fights, sex, drugs... you name it, it happened there. The bar, _'The Hangout,' _sounded pretty crowded. I had been in there a couple of times before, but hadn't stayed long. Despite my claims of a good fighter, I was made slightly (...okay, _extremely) _nervous by the number of tough drunk guys who were always trying to cop a feel or get laid. There were girls there who dressed and acted so much like strippers, that I was always surprised that they hadn't been hired by various other bars. The boys damn sure got pleasured often enough by them. So really all they needed was a name tag to become official.

Jackson grabbed my hand and pulled me in, stopping by the doorway for but a moment to whisper, _"you ready?" _before pulling me into the bar at my nod. He let go of my hand quickly as soon as we entered. He, in fact dropped it like my hand was a burning coal. I was confused, and contemplating whether or not to ask him what that had been about, when the bartender grabbed our attention.

"Whadya want?" He demanded tipsily. It seemed that a ten year old could have walked in and demanded alcohol and he wouldn't have noticed. It was annoying, and I disapproved, but I kept my mouth shut. The last thing you want in a bar is to draw attention to yourself. I did, however, frown at him whilst Jackson and I ordered our soft drinks, and taking a seat at the bar table. I leaned over my Coke glass, sighing tiredly.

"Are you okay?" Jackson's soft voice asked me tentatively. He wasn't talking of the moment at hand, he was thinking of, _'The Incident' _a few days before.

I really didn't want to talk about it, so I tried to make my expression lighter while replying, "I'm fine," in a energetic voice. I hoped he would believe me.

"Liar." Apparently not.

* * *

We had been there for an hour when it happened. Jackson had gone to the bathroom, and some guy sat beside me. He wasn't trying for sex, and he seemed nice enough, so I offered my hand and my name when he first spoke to me. His name was Marcus DeBoire, and was obviously French. He had a faint hint of an accent, that was really cute. He had dark brown hair that was cropped short, although his bangs crowded his eyes. His irises were a pleasant deep green, tinted with brown and gold flecks.

I really enjoyed speaking to him. We had quite a bit in common with one another, and he made me laugh. He had this comedic air about him, and he always he seemed quite pleased when he succeeded in making me chuckle. Marcus then bought me another Coke after I had finished laughing, which I was grateful for, seeing as I was thirsty and out of money. He continued to tell me about his family, his school, and his friends, and kept me entertained with funny stories about all of them.

I spoke of my family too, of course leaving out that I was beaten by my father and my parents' marital troubles. He was surprised when I told him I lived in Fairfax Village, saying that I didn't seem like the rich, spoiled stereotype. I blushed deeply and thanked him shyly, responding that he didn't seem like the typical Chavez bad boy stereotype either. He laughed long and loud at this, embarrassing me.

It was then I realized that I had no idea where Jackson was. I looked around the bar, finally seeing him flirting with a girl. He had her half-trapped against the wall, one of his arms beside her head. He was grinning full out, something he had never done with _me. _The girl in particular was very pretty, and looked like she was planning to get him in bed. The thought of him and that girl together made anger flair up inside of me. What was he _doing?_

"Uh... Melissa?" Marcus said, snapping me out of my trance.

"Yeah? What!" My voice was a little angrier than intended, and he recoiled at the tone. I quickly apologized, and then gestured to Jackson and that slut.

"Hmmm..." He said, thinking, "is he your boyfriend?"

"No, of course not!" I protested, flabbergasted. He smiled tightly, a hint of what looked like jealously flashing in his eyes.

"Well... I know who he's with." He admitted.

"Who?" I questioned.

"That's Annika Littlemore," he explained, "she's quite the known slut around here, your _friend_ better be careful. She'll jump his bones faster than a-"

"Thank you," I interrupted, pushing myself off of the stool, "for everything, it was nice meeting you." I shook his hand once more before whirling around and walking angrily towards Jackson and his ex-girlfriend, who was reaching up to try and kiss him.

They were too caught up flirting to notice me. I angrily grabbed Jackson's arm off of the wall, causing him to fall against it. He angrily turned around, his eyes burning. I took a stepped back hesitantly, having never seen him like this. His expression didn't change when he saw that it was me, instead he was getting even angrier. The slut stepped beside him, her own beautiful blues glaring at me.

"Melissa, what the _hell _are you doing?!" He growled loudly at me, making people stop and stare.

"What am _I _doing? What the hell are _you _doing, hanging off of your ex-girlfriend and practically inviting her to screw you!" I was shouting and I blushed deeply when the music's volume was lowered and the sound of people dancing abruptly stopped. Jackson blushed faintly as well, noticing the people staring at him and remembering the bar's unwritten Golden Rule: _Don't draw attention to yourself. _But, like me, he seemed to angry to care.

"That's none of your business!" He yelled furiously. Annika grinned at me, "what I do with whomever is none of your damn business!"

I felt tears gathering at me eyelids, this was too much.

"Fine!" I finally yelled, "when you're finished getting fucked, I'll be at the car!!" My tone was vicious enough to either scare or surprise Jackson, although I was voting for the latter. I turned heel and left the bar, trying to ignore the strange looks I was getting as I pushed my way out of the crowd.

Outside, it had started to spit lightly and it was getting cold. I could hear the music's volume return to normal as I held myself, trying to get my arms warm. Pounding across the parking lot, I silently walked past the guys who attempted to grab my ass. By the time I reached the car, I was freezing, upset, and wanting nothing than to get into the car, and put on the heat. Then I remembered I didn't have the keys. _Dammit, dammit, dammit!! _I cursed as I banged my head against the car.

"That's not going to help erase the display you just put on." I jumped, Jackson was behind me, looking quite fierce. I hadn't noticed that he had followed me out here. I glared right back at him.

"Shut up."

"Get in the damn car." He snarled at me before traveling to the other side of the car. I obeyed, my head still pounding with anger, but wanting to wait until we reached home before yelling at him again.

"With pleasure."

* * *

The car ride had of course been silent again, although this time because of anger instead of awkwardness. Jackson had made the occasional remark, which cut me, although I didn't show it, ignoring him instead of responding. I was stressed out, and my eyes were still blurred with tears, but I refused to allow them to escape.

When we arrived back home, we both got out angrily, slamming our car doors. It wasn't until we got inside and determined my mother wasn't there that we went for each other.

"She's you _ex-_girlfriend!! The one that got herself pregnant behind your back, REMEMBER?!" I yelled, stomping up the stairs.

"How the hell is that any of your business!?" He shouted following me up there.

"Because I got the front row seat to watching you two flirt insanely!!" I screamed back at him, walking to my room's door and grabbing the handle, doing a half-turn so I could still see him. He was standing a few feet away from me, looking insanely angry.

"Oh, what about that asshole that _you _were flirting with!!" He threw back at me. I was stunned. "yeah. _Him!! _What about me?! I got to watch as you laughed and coyly flirted with him!!"

I was too tired and too angry to finish this. Plus, I was stunned silent by his remark, he sounded almost... jealous. So I just turned around, preparing to go into my room.

But he didn't let me.

He swept me off of my feet and slammed me into the door. I gasped, his lips colliding with mine. At first I attempted to push him off of me, knowing that this was wrong... even if I was enjoying it. But it only seemed to make him angrier, so he grabbed my arms and slammed above my head. It stopped me from being able to push him off me. I was also not able to move due to his muscled body pinning my own against that door. But by that time, I was not able to resist him anymore and joined in.

His lips crushed mine with bruising force, his tongue sweeping across my lower lip. It was more of a demand than a request that his tongue be allowed to enter my mouth. I obeyed immediately, melting into his embrace and kissing him back with the same amount of ferocity. Our tongues were dancing hotly together, dancing a fiery battle. A moan escaped me, he was _awfully _good at this. He pushed me harder against my door and ground against me, making me gasp loudly. I was getting wetter and wetter by the second.

His lips left mine and latched onto my neck, sucking and biting hard enough to bruise. One of his hands let go of my arms and traveled down my body, stopping at my hip to grasp tightly, eliciting yet another moan from me. His wandering hand then moved up into my shirt, his fingers getting gentle as he caressed my right breast through my bra. I was in too much pleasure to realize how far he was getting. His hand then moved underneath my bra to squeeze and massage my breast, his lips and teeth still attacking my neck. At that I moaned out his name,

"_Jackson..." _And then he was gone. His hand was out of my shirt and he had released me. He was standing a few feet from me again, panting just as hard as I was. His eyes were filled with lust and he looked like he was going to fly at me again and I wasn't going to try and stop him this time. I would have let him go on all night if it meant I could feel that pleasure again. Especially if it was from him. Instead, his mouth fell open at what he had done, and then he hesitantly backed away from me until he was at his doorway, where he disappeared.

I stood there, knowing in my heart that there was going to be problems now.

Shit.

* * *

**A/N: And there is the kiss that you've all been waiting for. I hoped you liked it. I just reread my first Author's Note and feel like I owe you all an apology. A lot of stuff is pretty fucked up right now, starting with my dog biting someone and ending with Child Services invading my home. But anyway, please review.**


	9. Chapter IX

**Opposites Attract**

**Chapter 9**

**Title: **Opposites Will Attract  
**Chapter: **9  
**Word Count: 1139  
****Pairing: **Melissa and Jackson  
**Author: **ICan'tDecideWhatMyPenName  
**Fandom: **Flight 29 Down  
**Disclaimer: **If I owned it, Taylor would've stayed a bitch, Melissa would have been stronger, and Jackson would've liked Melissa from the very beginning.  
**Summary: **Melissa is surprised one morning with a new addition to the family. He's rude, and he likes to taunt her, but nevertheless, she feels something other than hate towards him.

**A/N: Sorry guys. Heh, heh, NO hurting me, I am innocent. …Sort of. Life sucks, everything sucks, two girls in my class are COMPLETE bitches. You know, the usual. Anywho, my best friend (in real life), who goes by the name **_**Drottningu, **_**has just written a one-shot called **_**'Happy Birthday,' **_**which is her first lemon, so BE NICE to her, or I will punish you ALL.**

_**Review Replies**_

**Kacee: **_Thanks, I'll watch out for those. No problem about the mix-up, it happens._

**justm: **_Thanks you!!_

**Serendipity545: **_Sorry about the grounding, it sucks when they take away the computer, doesn't it? Of course the jealously!! We're humans aren't we, as you said. Thanks for reviewing._

**Joucelin Hades: **_You are an awesome person who says the right thing. Damn right he's an ass. Do you know that he called our house like, four times a day! I'm getting of topic, thanks for reviewing._

**abovetherim: **_Thanks, for the prayers and the review. It really helped._

**naturallysadie: **_Thanks!! Sorry for the wait._

**lovingo0Kawaii0oGirl: **_Thanks!!_

**YoungKi: **_WOOHOO!!! Another person on my side, NICE!! Thanks!!_

**iwalkinthelight: **_Yes, I'm in school, thanks for the patience._

**: **_(Chuckles) Thanks!!_

**Warning: This chapter REALLY sucks.**

The next morning was awkward. No words were passed between either Melissa and Jackson. She blushed when he came into the room, but he paid her no attention. She tried not to do the same, but, she couldn't help but keep glancing at him constantly. The extreme blush that had dominated her cheeks had faded to a tinge of pink that apparently wouldn't leave. Jackson ate quickly – actually, he practically inhaled his food – before heading out the door. It was a school day, but it didn't look like he was planning to actually attend school. Melissa couldn't blame him, she was still going to school, but without Jackson there it would be easier.

She finished her food and put the dishes in the dishwasher, before cautiously heading out the door to school.

Nothing seemed different when she reached school. Melissa wasn't actually sure what she expected. Maybe after kissing Jackson it was as if she expected the world to be ending. Her world was actually pretty normal, despite the crazy shit that had been happening in the past couple of months. No one noticed her, they went along with their own business, although a few stopped to say hi. It was sort of a relief. But still… there was no one to talk to about everything.

Melissa's head was down, her attention caught by last night. She didn't notice when her ex-boyfriend jumped off of the picnic table to follow her.

"Melissa!"

She turned around swiftly, surprised. It caused a crash in the middle of the hall. Several people swore loudly and commenced to yell, but silenced when a teacher entered the hall to scream at them as well. Melissa took no notice. Her eyes were locked with Eric's. Her eyes were filled to the brim with hatred and suspicion, and she took note that he flinched with guilt.

"Can we talk?" He asked, turning red. Melissa looked back and forth, before remembering that Jackson – her unofficial bodyguard – wasn't here today. She turned her gaze back to Eric's,

"I'm not sure that's a good idea…" she trailed off. Eric sighed heavily before running his hands through his hair.

"Please Mel…" When she shook her head again, he stepped forward and grabbed her arm. Ignoring her protests, he pulled her along the hall.

Opening the door, he shoved her into an empty classroom. She stumbled from the force before catching herself and regaining her composure. She put desks between them, before looking at him warily, her heart pounding loudly in her throat.

"I'm sorry." He burst out with, not letting her cut in, "I was a jealous idiot, and I didn't know how good I had it, you are a wonderful girl." Melissa's wide eyes were watching him carefully, full of fear, but a glimpse of hope that glistened there encouraged him on. "And… I want to show you that I'm still a good person… and maybe we could give it another shot."

Melissa was now exasperated, "That's a load of crap." And then she left, not wanting to hear anything else.

Eric's eyes widened before furrowing into a frown.

* * *

The rest of the day passed without anything else occurring.

No cars in the driveway lightened her mood. She entered her house, calling out to her kittens. Stepping into the kitchen, her smile disappeared when she saw Jackson leaning against the kitchen table. Her bag dropped from her hand.

Jackson stepped towards her, "we need to talk about this."

**A/N: Before you all review, cursing my very existence, I will explain. I need a filler, and I have been through hell. By hell… I mean in the hospital under suicidal supervision. …I was depressed. You may think that it is strange that I am telling you guys this, but… I want to be honest, plus… it's refreshing to be able to say this. And since I'm anonymous there won't be any ramifications.**

**Anyway, I know this chapter is sucks and is short. I hope you will not abandon the story.**


	10. Chapter X

**Title: **Opposites Will Attract  
**Chapter: **10  
**Word Count: **1840  
**Pairing: **Melissa/Jackson  
**Author: **Depressed Elf (I think I may have been high/drunk when I chose this name)  
**Fandom: **Flight 29 Down  
**Disclaimer: **If I owned it, Taylor would've stayed a bitch, Melissa would've been stronger, and Jackson would've liked Melissa from the start.  
**Summary: **Melissa is surprised one morning with a new addition to the family. He's rude, and he likes to taunt her, but nevertheless, she feels something other than hatred towards him.

**A/N: Hey! Remember me? I uh… am fresh out of excuses. I really am sorry though. Um… please review and all that. I am going to ask you all a BIG favour, and in return I will grant you a quicker update next time. You remember **_**Drottningu? **_**She's the friend I told you about. Don't tell I told you so, but she has published another F29D story besides **_**Happy Birthday **_**(which you all didn't review; I checked. BAD!) called **_**Falling.**_** Check it out, it's REALLY good.**

**A BIG THANK YOU TO **_**DROTTNINGU – **_**FOR HELPING ME WRITE THIS CHAPTER AND MAKING ME FEEL GUILTY FOR NOT UPDATING SINCE NOVEMBER – AND **_**SERENDIDPITY545**_** – FOR ALSO GIVING ME A KICK IN THE YOU-KNOW-WHERE. **

* * *

_**Review Replies**_

**Serendipity545: **_Just don't permanently harm any of my reviewers (I need them). Just kidding. Melissa is sort of stuck in the middle here, and there are two boys that she desperately wants to avoid (she isn't too good with confrontation). Thanks for reviewing __**Drottningu's **__story, although she scolds me for begging for reviews. For some reason she hasn't received many reviews, and although she says she's fine, I know she's a little jealous of me. _

**pact des loups: **_Thanks! You're sweet._

**Zemire: **_Thanks, I send you my encouragement as well. I'm doing much better, and my home life is finally starting to settle down and get back to normal (for us anyway). Thanks for your kind words._

**Joucelin Hades: **_Thanks!!!!!_

**Kacee: **_You remain one of my favourite reviewers! The two girls that were bothering me got in trouble. One of them has ADHD which sort of gives her a free pass with the other teachers. The other was a new girl that had been kicked out of her old school for bullying. After reporting them both a few times (I still feel like a rat) the new girl was moved to another class._

**jbjp90: **_Thanks!!! Sorry about the hold-up._

**flight29downanimefan: **_Thanks!!! The Hartwell spinoff? I've heard about it on Youtube from some user who posted a chapter of it on Youtube with the characters as Sims. It was extremely OOC and not very well written in my opinion. Did you mean THAT spinoff series? Because either than that no, I haven't heard of anything._

**IsisIsabella: **_Okay never mind. You, Serendipity545, and Kacee are my favourite reviewers. THANK YOU!!! It people like you review my stories that keep me writing._

**a7xwriter888: **_Thanks!!_

**abovetherim: **_Thanks!!!_

**devinerose: **_Thanks! And I totally agree. Some Mel/Jackson fics that I read I can't even finish. Or I just stop halfway through and go "Are you __**serious?!**__' _

**iwalkinthelight: **_Thanks! They are only technically foster-siblings, so they aren't anything like step-sibs. So this fic couldn't really be categorized as incest. Because I REALLY dislike the whole concept of incest. It's disgusting._

**soccerlizard8: **_Yes Ma'am/Sir. Sorry for the hold up._

**amber n: **_Thanks, I took your advice, and I hope that my return is okay. Have I mentioned how happy I am that you're back? I hope you can update your F29D story soon too._

**ride2night: **_Thanks!!_

* * *

_**Where we left off…**_

_Jackson stepped towards her, "We need to talk about this."_

_**Where we left off…**_

Melissa seemed frozen in position as she stared up at Jackson, her back still bent from placing her knapsack on the tiled floor. For a moment all was still, and it seemed that nothing breathed. Neither teenagers were breathing that was for certain, as both observed the other, waiting for one to crack and make a motion. A gesture. A noise.

Anything would do at this point.

It seemed to be their own little world in that instant. The wind that whistled through trees went unheard of, the ringing telephone and the birds chirping were ignored. Gremlin and Onyx's purrs weren't taken notice of, much to their chagrin as they both anxiously twirled between Melissa's legs while observing Jackson distastefully. It was as if they could instinctively sense that all was not well between the outsider and their master. Their age old loyalty and love for Melissa had kicked in as their eyes burned holes in Jackson.

_Three against one isn't really that fair, _a voice in the back of Jackson's head mused. The rest of his brain agreed wholeheartedly as cold fear of rejection or pain trickled down his spine. Pain from the cats, rejection from Melissa, and he was having a hard time deciding which would be less tasteful. He and Gremlin usually got along, and it was impossible _not _to get along with Onyx, but right now they were scaring him. He was _much _bigger than the two of them of course, but he was pretty sure that they could kick his ass if they wanted to.

Jackson cleared his throat and took a step forward, "Look… Mel…"

She took a step back. "No." She said, her voice trembling. She shook her head, stretching a hand out towards him, shaking it madly. Jackson paused, not sure what to do. "…No, no, no. No!" Melissa seemed near hysterics, "you don't get to do this to me. You _can't _do this to me. I can't handle this right now. No…" A silver tear fought its way down her cheek.

"Melissa…" Jackson felt a pang in his chest. He stepped towards her, his own hand stretching out. Gremlin and Onyx hissed fiercely immediately. Jackson hesitated. _What the hell was the matter with those cats?! _His hesitation lasted only a second, before he continued walking towards her. He never reached her though.

The front door slammed shut, breaking them out of their spell. Melissa's father came roaring through the house, his wife close behind him.

"No… _Sebastian!" _

He whirled around, his hand rising above her head; a formed fist. She flinched, hiding her red face in her hands. Jackson turned back to look at Melissa, her doe eyes were wide and fearful. Her hands were cupped over her mouth, silvery tears cascading steadily down her cheeks. Choked sobs racked her back, but she refused his embrace when he reached for her.

Lynne and Sebastian turned at the sounds. Sebastian's fist lowered slowly as his cold beady eyes danced from Melissa to Jackson, and resting on the outraged cats that seemed to be hissing in his general direction. Cold fury surged through him at the cats, and he strode forward.

"NO!!" Melissa shrieked, grabbing them both and moving out of the way. He headed for her, but Jackson got in the way.

"Get out of my way."

"No." He actually looked surprised for a moment at Jackson, before his soulless eyes became burning pits again. Jackson's gaze matched his, not for a second showing weakness.

"This is my house, you can't --"

"Yes I can. You have no right to hurt her." Jackson's fists were clenched, his body tensed. He had fought his fair share living on the streets; he figured he could hold off this bastard until Melissa could escape. His own safety had flown out of his head. He had had enough. _Melissa _had had far enough.

"You have no right to get in the middle of this."

"I have every right." Jackson countered, one of his hands sneaking behind his back to gesture frantically at Melissa to leave. "Go…" he muttered desperately. She shook her head, drifting closer to him. Jackson inwardly cursed. Trying to switch tactics; to distract him, he turned his head back to him. "…and I believe that the _police_ would be quite interested in this. I think _they _would believe they had every right to get involved."

The next moment was a blur. Sebastian's vein bulged out of his head, and he swung his right fist towards Jackson. Melissa and Lynne screamed, and Jackson miraculously dodged it. He turned immediately and grabbed Melissa's hand, pushing her roughly out the kitchen door.

Both their hearts pounding in their ears, they both ran for the front. Jackson fumbled for the car keys that he had in his pockets, opened the car, and shoved Mel – and the two cats – inside the car. Fearing the female screaming that continued from the house, and the swearing and running he could hear Sebastian. He was coming.

Shoving the key in the ignition, he backed the car up and sped down the street.

"Where are we going?" Melissa breathlessly asked, holding her cats close to her chest. ­_Her perfect chest... SNAP OUT OF IT!! _He thought, shaking his head. He turned towards her,

"To the police station." He answered tightly, preparing for a fight. He was right.

"NO!!" She yelled. He easily batted her hand away when she reached for the steering wheel.

"You don't get a choice here."

* * *


	11. Chapter XI

**Opposites Will Attract**

**Chapter 10**

**Title: **Opposites Will Attract  
**Chapter: **11  
**Word Count: **2,940  
**Pairing: **Melissa/Jackson  
**Author: **Depressed Elf (I think I may have been high/drunk when I chose this name)  
**Fandom: **Flight 29 Down  
**Disclaimer: **If I owned it, Taylor would've stayed a bitch, Melissa would've been stronger, and Jackson would've liked Melissa from the start.  
**Summary: **Melissa is surprised one morning with a new addition to the family. He's rude, and he likes to taunt her, but nevertheless, she feels something other than hatred towards him.

**A/N: Well, this is a quicker update than last time. I hope you like it; I'm not sure how good it is though. I'm having doubts at the moment.**

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_**Review Replies**_

**Sugar144: **_Thanks!!! I'm so glad that you liked the chapter!!_

**Kacee: **_Well, I hope you didn't hurt yourself when you fainted!! Lol, I missed this story too (as weird as it sounds), so I am glad it's back as well. Thanks so much, although I'm pretty sure that ALL authors are crazy frootloops. We're special that way. I'm glad you liked the chapter. I'll try to update soon. It's a police scene (between you and me) so it'll be FUN!!!!_

**IsisIsabella: **_Another person who almost fainted?! I'm NOT paying for your medical bills!!!!!!!!!!! Just kidding. I'm glad you liked the chapter. And I'll try to update sooner. Did you go to like I told you?!?! You CAN watch all the episodes there!!!! There's a TWO-WEEK hiatus here in Canada, and it's getting SO GOOD between Owen and Cristina. I'm not sure what I'm going to do!! I'm rambling, aren't I? But APPARENTLY, Owen is also going to accidentally hurt Cristina. I saw the promo, he's on a gurney, and you see flailing, and then she's sort of thrown back. ?!?!?!?!?!?!? …I'm scared._

**abovetherim: **_Thanks!!!_

**ride2night: **_Sorry!!! Thanks for waiting so patiently!!!!_

**J. Hades: **_Well I tried!!! Was it good enough?_

**TrixieNancy124: **_Is this __**'soon' **__enough?_

**Serendipity545: **_(I know I already PMed you this, but I couldn't wait to PM you!) Really? Okay, I guess I agree, although it was over 1800 words - although that might have something to do with all the review replies... Anyway... THANK YOU!!!!! I have been panicking because you are usually on of the first reviewers but how'd you know I was freaking?????? Thanks for the heads up on the mistakes, most reviewers have been too excited about my 'Return' and haven't been giving any constructive criticism. Yes, Sebastian knows about the affair, he caught Eric's Dad with Lynne. Remember? He was already furious with her, but the 'Defiance' that Melissa's cats showed pushed him over the edge (he's a maniac!). Anyway, THANK YOU for finally reviewing; I'm sorry about your internet. The reason Melissa fell apart is because, well, to give you a spoiler, she actually cared what Jackson had to say, and after what Eric did and Jackson's kiss she had blocked him out. Plus, she thought he was going to hurt her. Emotionally, I mean. I thought the chapter was alright for my return, especially after all the crap I've been going through lately. But do you have any suggestions? Drottningu has been giving me some, but honestly, when she helps me she just gives me suggestions and I decide whether or not to take them. I'd love another helper. Do you mind? Because that'd be great!_

**iwalkinthelight: **_Believe me, I LOVE long reviews!!! Tell me more about this dragon of yours. I love dragons as well, and I've got a friend who's OBSESSED with them. Both of us kind of us are. Blame __**'Christopher Paolini", **__it's his fault!!!! Anyway, I have actually read quite a few stories (either fiction of non-fiction) about victims of household violence. And one of my neighbours' is about 10-years-old, and apparently gets his head smashed against the wall often enough. But enough of the depressing stuff (which is ironic because my story really seems to be that), and THANKS for the review!!!_

_**Where we left off…**_

"_Where are we going?" Melissa breathlessly asked, holding her cats close to her chest. __**Her perfect chest… SNAP OUT OF IT!! **__He thought, shaking his head. He turned towards her,_

"_To the police station." He answered tightly, preparing for a fight. He was right._

"_NO!!" She yelled. He easily batted her hand away when she reached for the steering wheel._

"_You don't get a choice here."_

_**Where we left off…**_

* * *

They hadn't been driving long. They were still arguing, and Jackson was still having trouble believing that she was actually fighting him on this. Her father looked like he was about to strike her mother – his _wife _– and then tried to hurt both Melissa and her cats. And she was _fighting _him?? True enough, Jackson had been around domestic violence often enough, and had read a lot on the subject (school project), and he had read/heard that victims didn't want to leave their abusers. But usually that applied to when a boyfriend/husband hurt his wife. When it was a child they damn sure hated them with all they had and got away from them as soon as they could. His Dad hadn't really stayed around long enough for him to hate him for years, although his mother had had enough boyfriends to make up for it. They never lasted long though.

He was just thankful at this point that she had stopped trying to grab the wheel. It had made it extremely difficult to drive. She had actually tried _grabbing _the wheel at one point, and they had swerved a bit, angering quite a few drivers. Some old people had at one point stopped their car, and got out to _'school' _them on proper driving. They had also received the finger quite a few times. After that she seemed to have calmed down a bit. Not a lot, but enough to allow him to drive properly. But the bitching continued, and it was enough to almost make him wish for the grabbing back. Not quite, but close.

"NO!! Jackson, you _can't _do this, you're crazy!! Turn this damn car around _right now!! _Why are you even doing this?! This isn't any of your business!! This is _my problem. _Not yours!!"

"_Yes it is!" _He snapped, turning to look at her as the traffic light turned red. Melissa actually stopped talking for a moment to stare at him. "I can't watch you get hurt! I don't know how anyone else can, but I sure as hell can't! Now _stop _fighting me!!" His eyes glinted for a moment, and then he grabbed her chin, and pulled it forcefully towards him.

Their lips met roughly – their anger shown clearly through the contact. The cats meowed indignantly before escaping the position. They took no notice. Jackson's hand moved from her chin to move to thread his hand through her hair. Melissa's eyes fluttered shut, screwing shut as the kiss got more and more aggressive. He not-so-gently nipped at her bottom lip, and she moaned.

It took the honking of many impatient cars to break them out. They broke apart, but only an inch of space between the two of them. Jackson removed one hand from her neck, and the other from the small of her back. He straightened, savouring the way her face was flushed and from the wild lust in her eyes. He took a moment to get himself under control, a _big_ part of him want to lean back down to caress her swollen lips with his own. With the strong show of willpower he had ever shown in his life, he pressed the gas pedal and drove on. From his peripherals, her saw Melissa sort of fall back in her seat, heavily breathing.

_Well, at least __**that **__shut her up._ He thought cockily to himself, a smirk lacing on his lips. He was briefly imagining other ways that he could shut her up – making his jeans slightly uncomfortable – when he saw the police station. The smile (and bulge) immediately disappeared. He saw Melissa's breath hitch in her throat. Not the kind of hitched breath that he would have preferred… _Okay, that's it Jackson. Get a grip. _He thought firmly to himself as he pulled into the parking lot. He hesitantly stopped the car, and then turned to her again. He saw another flash of lust enter her eyes, but now wasn't the time. He leaned away from her, the flash sadly turning into disappointment.

"You are coming in with me." He said quietly, "No. Arguments." She opened her mouth – to protest no doubt – but something in his eyes stopped her. She sighed, the rush of air leaving her lips racking her entire body.

"I'm so tired…" She said quietly, tears glistening in her eyes. Jackson reached for her hand.

"I know. That's why we're doing this." Jackson murmured. Melissa raised her head questioningly.

"We?"

"We."

"O-Okay." She smiled tightly.

"Good."

--

The police officer had been extremely nice. Jackson had explained the situation quickly and quietly, glancing every now and then at Melissa, who sat in the lobby with her head in her hands. When he had finished, he was looking at Melissa sympathetically and looking at Jackson with something that resembled respect. He gestured towards a room. Jackson grabbed Melissa's arm and guided her along behind him. When they reached the room – which looked kind of like an interrogation room for crooks – he told them to wait there.

"What's going to happen…?" Melissa trailed off, hesitantly taking a seat in one of the plastic and metal seats that had been set out for them. Jackson followed suit, but made sure that they stayed a safe distance, not wanting to be caught kissing again, especially not by the police. His desire for her had grown steadily since their first kiss, and had been there since he had met the beautiful Asian. It wouldn't help the situation by maybe making the police think that there was no problem, they were just role-playing.

"I… I don't know." He admitted quietly, "But I know that this is the right thing to do." He looked up at her. "Why are you so against this?"

"I dunno." Melissa admitted quietly, shifting her feet and wringing her hands. "I…I guess that I didn't think that anyone would believe me. Both my parents are well-known around here, and I thought that I would be just brushed off. That's what happened with the Kronbergs."

"What?!?!" Jackson hissed, a guilty stone settling into his lower stomach. He had heard of the Kronbergs, although now of this issue. They were one of the wealthiest people in L.A.

"Oh, you didn't know?" Melissa asked, almost happily. When Jackson shook his head, she actually _smiled. _Jackson supposed that it was because that the spotlight was off of her miserable life. The smile faded once she realized that it was inappropriate time to be smiling.

"No."

"Well, they were the perfect family, until Aidan, their eldest, started swimming. The first time we all had to do it – it was a school thing. He came out in a bathing suit, and we could see them. His entire body was covered in purple, blue, and even yellow-and-brown bruises. His twin sister, Adele, refused to take off the baggy shirt that covered her bathing suit. When some girls forced it off of her, we saw similar bruises. The gym teacher was furious, and he took both of them to the principal's office, and called Child's Aids. Aidan and Adele pleaded with them not to get involved."

"What happened?" Jackson asked, having never seen these kids, and never heard this story. He was on the edge of his seat, desperate to know if the Kronberg story would have a related ending to Melissa's.

"They started coming to school with more bruises, only they were more visible this time. There was a big case at court, but there wasn't enough proof. Both Aidan and Adele refused to confess that their parents hurt them, and there were no witnesses. In the end the case was dropped, but the condition was that they get sent to boarding school in somewhere like Switzerland. But still… anytime we actually see them when they actually come to visit, they're all bruised."

Jackson sat back, reeling. He had thought that Melissa was an exception to the whole _'Rich Kids Have Everything'. _But it turns out, that there was a lot about this community that he was oblivious to. There were affairs that could break up entire lives and families – like Melissa's Mom and Eric's Dad. There was abuse that never left the household – Melissa and now apparently the Kronbergs. And there were teenaged relationships that were supposed to last forever, but consisted of no love – Melissa and _Eric. _He had truly been an ass.

He didn't get the chance to apologize for that though. Two police men entered the room just as he was about to speak. One of them was the one that Jackson had first spoken to. He looked in his late twenties, and had black hair that was in a close-cut. He was well-built, and looked like be wouldn't take any crap, but also like he was capable of compassion.

The other one was a little scarier. He was taller than the first. A scar was drawn unattractively down his face, one of his eyes stayed shut as a result. The scar wasn't new, it had obviously been there for awhile, and it looked excruciatingly painful. He looked rough, and cold, and looked _at least _50 or 60. Jackson wasn't actually sure what to expect from him. He seemed unpredictable, and quite frankly Jackson didn't _want _unpredictable right then. He wanted safe, and predictable.

The first one spoke, "I'm Officer David Greene, and this is Scott Harrison." He said, gesturing to the big scarred one. Jackson and Melissa nodded. He sat down across from them, but Scott remained standing. He hesitated, before opening his mouth.

"From what Jackson has told me, you are the daughter of Lynne and Sebastian Wu, correct?" Melissa nodded. "Okay, we need you to tell us the entire story. Mr. Jackson here already told us most, but we'd prefer to here it from you, because he hasn't actually been living with your family for very long. So… Melissa, right?" She nodded once more.

Scott stepped forward. "Stop stalling Greene. We need you to tell us everything. Now. Every single detail if you want us to help you. I won't have another Kronberg repeat." He said a gruff voice.

"You were on that case?!" Melissa and Jackson asked loudly in unison. His eye traveled to look at them.

"Aye, that was me. And I've met your father before. Didn't like him. Not one bit. Got a funny vibe from him all right."

"O…Okay…" Melissa stuttered.

He moved from his side of the table and kneeled down in front of Melissa, and actually smiled. "There is no reason to be nervous, lass. We want to help, but you have to let us help you." She looked up at him, and smiled back at him.

"Okay."

* * *

**A/N: Tell me if you see any mistakes. I am too tired to reread it and look for anymore mistakes. I know, that makes me a bad person, but **_**I'm tired, **_**and I am having family troubles. So, for anyone who will be pissed at me for this… **_**Va'Fa Napoli!!!**_


End file.
